Boeing 787 suffers two bruising days of problems:
Airlines flying Boeing Co's new 787 Dreamliners need to take
extra steps to ensure the planes don't have engine failures or fires because of
a manufacturing fault in the fuel line, a U.S. regulator said Wednesday.
Improperly
assembled parts in Boeing's newest jet could cause the planes to run out of
fuel, experience "engine power loss or shutdown, or leaks on hot engine
parts that could lead to a fire," the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration
said in issuing a formal rule requiring U.S. carriers to inspect the fuel
systems.
The fuel
issue first emerged Tuesday, the same day a United Airlines 787 flight with 184 people aboard had to make an
emergency landing due to an electrical problem.
While the
combined episodes gave Boeing a painful black eye, several analysts said the
issues posed little long-term risk for the plane maker, which is speeding up
production and designing several new derivative jets to better compete with
Airbus. Boeing shares fell just 0.2 percent to $73.87.
"There are an awful lot of new features, new technologies and new manufacturing techniques that have produced an enormous number of teething problems, but so far no show stoppers," said Richard Aboulafia, an aerospace analyst with Virginia-based Teal Group.
United said
Wednesday that a failed power generator was to blame for the flight from
Houston to Newark diverting to New Orleans. It landed safely and there were no
injuries.
Five other
generators in an aft electrical equipment bay powered the plane after the failure,
and there appeared to be no outward signs of trouble, United said.
"The pilots received messages in the cockpit," alerting them to the fault, said Christen David, a United spokeswoman.
Boeing said
the issue was not related to what caused an electrical fire in the same
location aboard a test plane two years ago. In that case, Boeing has said, a
foreign object in an electrical panel had caused arcing that led to the fire.
The fuel
problem had been a behind-the-scenes issue for Boeing since Japan's All Nippon
Airways found a leak on October 23 and reported it to Boeing and the FAA.
Boeing had
issued a notice on November 11 alerting other early 787 customers, which
include Qatar Airways, Japan Airlines LAN
Airlines, Ethiopian Airlines and Air India.
All Nippon
Airways is currently Boeing's biggest 787 operator, owning 16 of the 38 jets
delivered to buyers so far. All but one of the planes delivered so far were
made at Boeing's factory in Everett, Washington, rather than its plant in North
Charleston, South Carolina.
United, the
only U.S. carrier flying 787s, said Wednesday it had completed the FAA-mandated
inspections.
The fuel
leaks were caused by improper assembly of the couplings at the Boeing
factories, the FAA said.
"These
conditions, if not corrected, could result in fuel leaks, which could lead to
fuel exhaustion, engine power loss or shutdown, or leaks on hot engine parts
that could lead to a fire," the FAA said.
Boeing said
that despite that there were "multiple layers of systems to ensure none of
those things happen".
The safety
order, known as an airworthiness directive, requires operators to inspect for
correctly installed lockwires on the engine fuel line couplings within seven
days of its publication.
Within 21
days, operators must inspect the couplings to verify they have been assembled
correctly.
Despite the
high-profile FAA action, the agency's safety order technically only requires
inspections by United. The FAA only has U.S. jurisdiction and no other U.S.
airlines currently fly the jet. For future planes, inspections will be
performed at the factory. Other aviation regulators were expected to adopt the
FAA rule and Boeing said half of the planes already had been inspected.
Aerospace
enthusiasts ridiculed the problems on message boards.
"$200 million doesn't get you much reliability these days," said one. Another suggested that the problems in assembly and quality inspection might come from speeding up production. Boeing is aiming to produce 5 Dreamliners a month by year-end, up from 3.5 a month, and to reach 10 a month by next year.
But the
episodes appeared unlikely to affect Boeing's 787 order book, said Peter
Arment, an analyst with Sterne, Agee & Leach. Boeing will get to the root
cause and come up with any needed solutions, he said.
While such
circumstances are unexpected, they should not come as a surprise given the
revolutionary nature of the plane, Aboulafia, of the Teal Group said.
Airlines will
watch closely to ensure aircraft are ready and that corrective measures are
taken, given the cost of cancelled flights.
Source: Reuters
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