US, India, Japan, Ethiopia and Qatar ground Boeing 787 fleet

A battery beneath the cockpit of the Boeing 787 forced to make an emergency landing in Japan was swollen from overheating, a safety official said Thursday, as India joined the U.S. and Japan in grounding the technologically advanced aircraft because of fire risk.     

U.S. officials, and a Boeing engineer, are due in Japan on Friday to assist with Japan's investigation into the All Nippon Airways 787 that landed in western Japan after a cockpit message showed battery problems and a burning smell was detected in the cockpit and cabin.     

The main battery in an electrical room beneath the cockpit was swollen and had leaked electrolyte, safety inspector Hideyo Kosugi said on Japanese broadcaster NHK.

Investigators found burn marks around the battery, though it was not thought to have caught fire.     

The 787, known as the Dreamliner, is Boeing's newest jet, and the company is counting heavily on its success. Since its launch after delays of more than three years, the plane has been plagued by a series of problems including a battery fire and fuel leaks.     

GS Yuasa Corp., the maker of the lithium ion batteries used in the 787s, said it was helping with the investigation but that the cause of the problem was unclear.     

"We still don't know if the problem is with the battery, the power source or the electronics system," said Yasushi Yamamoto, a spokesman the company which is based in Kyoto, Japan. "The cause of the problem is not clear," he said. Thales, which makes the battery charging system, has not commented so far.     

Air India's decision Thursday to ground its fleet of six Boeing 787, under orders from Indian aviation authorities, means that some 36 of the 50 jets in use around the world are now out of action. Japan's ANA, which has 17 of the 787s and Japan Airlines, which has seven, voluntarily halted flights Wednesday after the emergency landing but aviation authorities have now made the grounding an official directive.     

In Washington, the Federal Aviation Administration also required U.S. carriers to stop flying 787s until the batteries are demonstrated to be safe. United Airlines has six of the jets and is the only U.S. carrier flying the model. Aviation authorities in other countries usually follow the lead of the country where the manufacturer is based.

Qatar Airways also grounded its entire fleet of five Boeing 787 Dreamliner aircraft until further notice, the company said in a statement on Thursday.
   
It said it was following instructions from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Qatar's Civil Aviation Authority.

Later on Ethiopian airlines also announced the grounding of its four #Boeing Dreamliners for "precautionary inspections".


AP/REUTERS