Airlines from Japan, Chile, India and Poland, as well as the US’s own United Airlines, are said to be making plans to suspend usage of the 787 aircraft and begin re-accomodating customers in order to comply with directives from the respective aviation authorities.
In the US, the Federal Aviation Administration last week launched a comprehensive review of the aircraft following fire and fuel leaks.
Late on Wednesday, the FAA said it would work with the manufacturer and carriers on an action plan to allow the US 787 fleet to resume operations as quickly and safely as possible.
“The in-flight Japanese battery incident followed an earlier 787 battery incident that occurred on the ground in Boston on 7 January 2013,” the regulator said.
GS Yuasa, the battery supplier to Boeing 787 planes that are being grounded, said it may take months to complete its investigation into what caused an emergency landing of an All Nippon Airways Dreamliner.
In October 2012, a Boeing official responded to complaints from a Japanese supplier over a jump in production for the new Dreamliner, saying the planemaker has its sprawling global supply chain under control and would expose new supply bottlenecks.
