Forestry officials on the Greek island of Crete have slapped a five-year ban on the collection of a variety of wild herbs snipped to near-extinction, the state-run ANA agency said Monday. …read more
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Tag Archives: ANA
Japan Airlines flight for Tokyo returns to Boston
A Japan Airlines Boeing 787 that left Boston for Tokyo on Thursday returned to Boston “due to aircraft maintenance”, the company said on its website without elaborating.
Japan Airlines has one of the largest fleets of the Boeing 787 and has had several problems with the new-generation Dreamliner plane since it was allowed to resume flying after being grounded between January and April for serious battery problems.
The plane left from Boston at 12:57pm (1657 GMT) but returned to its airport of departure at around 6:00 pm.
“As a standard precautionary measure due to a maintenance message (fuel pump) indicator, JL007 bound for Tokyo-Narita decided to return to Boston Logan for check and landed safely,” Carol Anderson, a US-based JAL spokeswoman, told AFP in an email.
Boston Logan said on its Twitter site the 787 made “a precautionary return”.
“Flight has landed and is taxiing to gate,” it said.
JAL officials in Tokyo were not immediately available for comment.
Last week, another 787 used by Ethiopian Airlines caught fire at London’s Heathrow airport.
Japanese airlines Japan Airlines and ANA, which has the biggest fleet of the craft, have experienced around a dozen minor complaints with the 787 since it was allowed to resume flying after four months of being grounded.
After months of investigations, US authorities in April formally approved Boeing’s battery fix and Japanese regulators followed suit.
The battery supplier, Japan’s GS Yuasa, has voiced confidence that the system will never cause similar problems again.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
This Little Airline Has Big China Plans
By Adam Levine-Weinberg, The Motley Fool
Filed under: Investing
On Wednesday morning, Hawaiian Holdings subsidiary Hawaiian Airlines announced that it plans to fly to Beijing from its Honolulu hub, beginning on April 16, 2014. Assuming that the route is approved by the U.S. and Chinese governments, it will be Hawaiian’s 10th new international destination since it began its recent round of expansion in November, 2010.
China, here we come
Hawaiian has had its eyes on growth markets in Asia for several years, but began its expansion with the more mature, developed countries of the Pacific Rim. In the past two and a half years, the carrier has added four destinations in Japan (and will beginning serving a fifth city, Sendai, in late June), as well as cities in South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. Hawaiian is also preparing to launch service to Taiwan — another relatively wealthy Pacific Rim country — this summer.
However, the big prize is China, which is an enormous market with a rapidly growing economy and rising middle class. Hawaiian’s management has continually stressed China‘s potential as a long-term-growth driver. The company already has a Chinese-language website, and targets Chinese customers with “codeshare” flights on Korean Air and ANA that connect with Hawaiian’s flights from Japan and South Korea to Honolulu. Moreover, at the Hawaiian Airlines investor day last December, the company pointed to Beijing as one of five cities in China that could be viable for near-term expansion.
Management has repeatedly stated that the biggest impediment to succeeding in China is the complexity of the U.S. visa process. Despite the difficulty of obtaining U.S. visas, the Hawaii Tourism Authority expects visitor arrivals from China to increase 25% this year, to 145,000. Hawaiian’s Beijing flights will provide approximately 46,000 seats annually, and will be the only direct flights between Beijing and Hawaii. It should be manageable to fill this amount of capacity given the size and growth of the market, especially because the existence of direct flights will stimulate demand.
Why it matters
Hawaiian Airlines‘ capacity is still heavily concentrated on West Coast-Hawaii routes. This over-reliance on one region has made Hawaiian vulnerable to supply and demand trends there. Most notably, the rapid growth of Alaska Airlines in the West Coast-Hawaii market has put pressure on Hawaiian’s operating results. While Hawaiian is not pulling back in the West Coast market, its global expansion nevertheless helps it diversify its revenue base. Moreover, after rapid expansion in Japan, Hawaiian is now trying to diversify its international reach, particularly because the yen’s rapid fall has diminished the profitability of Japan flights.
However, entering China is particularly important because of the size of the opportunity. Beijing has a population of more than 20 million, as does Shanghai. Hong Kong, Guangzhou, and Chengdu (the other three cities listed as opportunities by Hawaiian’s management) are slightly smaller, but still very populous by U.S. standards. Hawaiian is beginning with three flights a week from Beijing, but within a few years China
From: http://www.dailyfinance.com/2013/04/12/this-little-airline-has-big-china-plans/
Dow Faces Headwinds That Even Wall Street Can't Deny
By Jessica Alling, The Motley Fool
Filed under: Investing
Sixteen points. All the Dow Jones Industrial Average needed yesterday was 16 measly points to reach its all-time high. But just like its close calls before, investors backed off when it got too close for comfort. And today, the first day of $85 billion in spending cuts due to the government‘s inability to reach a resolution to the shudder-inducing sequestration, the Dow may have a steeper hill to climb in order to reach the record summit.
On top of the spending cuts, investors have been faced with some disappointing economic news as well. Personal income fell in January by 3.6%, the most in two decades. Savings was up 2.6% in December due to increased special dividends and other payouts, which helped offset the drop in income. Consumer spending inched up by 0.2% in January, but the money generally went toward fuel bills in the home and in the car. In Europe, new unemployment figures show an increase to 11.9% in January, an all-time record for the eurozone.
Despite the downer news from Washington today, the Dow has some winners that may help it at least stay flat in trading.
Boeing , a huge government contractor, is remaining afloat this morning. Up 0.44% just before 11:30 a.m. ET, the aircraft manufacturer may be getting closer to a solution for its 787 Dreamliner fleet’s battery issues. The company has been taking steps to convince its Japanese customers of the craft’s safety, and it seems to be paying off — the president of Boeing’s largest 787 customer, ANA, has said he believes that the company has made great strides to resolve the issue and he has confidence that the aircraft will be operational once the battery is functional. In the meantime, Boeing is cutting back on contract workers at a second Dreamliner facility to save costs while the fleet is grounded. But there is good news for the company: It has just inked a deal with Air Lease for 10 777’s.
Disney is also up this morning, despite news that the company may have a proxy fight on its hands. After CEO Robert Iger was announced as chairman of the company’s board last year, some large institutional investors have made their displeasure known. The company had a long history of independent board leadership, and the investors are worried about transparency. Elsewhere, Disney’s new venture with Nintendo, Disney Infinity for Wii U, has just debuted new figurines that will enhance the in-game play. Disney is apparently in talks with Toys R Us for exclusive distribution rights for the figurines. And next week should be a big one for the media side of Disney, as its Wizard of Oz prequel, The Great and Powerful Oz, is set to be released on March 8.
The biggest winner so far this morning is Bank of America , up by 2.58% earlier this morning. The bank has been up and down this week, as usual, but a few …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance
ANA puts Dreamliner fleet architect in charge of airline business
TOKYO (Reuters) – Japan's All Nippon Airways said it will switch to a holding company structure, putting Osamu Shinobe, the main architect of its strategy to put the Boeing Co Dreamliner at the centre of its fleet planning, in charge of the airline business from April. The management reshuffle comes as the airline juggles its schedules and cancels flights with its 17 Dreamliners parked at airports in Japan until U.S. and Japanese regulators allow the aircraft to fly again. …
Japan identifies spate of Boeing 787 jet problems
Japanese investigators have identified the causes of fuel leaks and other problems with Boeing’s 787 but are still investigating the more serious battery problem that forced an emergency landing in January and the worldwide grounding of the jets.
An oil leak was caused by an improper paint job that led to a switch not working properly, while inadequate taping led to cracks in cockpit glass, and a faulty part led to braking problems, according to the Transport Ministry‘s investigation released Friday into problems that occurred with the 787 Dreamliner in January.
The government issued orders to fix the problems with 787s operated by Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways, the country’s two major carriers and the biggest customers for Boeing Co.’s new jet.
All 50 of the 787 jets in service around the world have been grounded for more than a month after a lithium-ion battery in a 787 operated by ANA overheated Jan. 16, forcing an emergency landing in western Japan. Earlier in January, a lithium-ion battery caught fire in a Japan Airlines 787 parked in Boston.
Boeing and U.S. authorities are also investigating, but Friday’s findings shed little light on the main problem.
The 787 is the first jet to extensively use lithium-ion batteries, which weigh less, charge faster and are more powerful than other kinds of batteries. Japanese manufacturer GS Yuasa makes the batteries for Boeing.
The aircraft manufacturer said earlier this week that it intends to propose to U.S. federal regulators a temporary fix for the batteries. The official who spoke on condition of anonymity did not disclose details.
A fix for the 787 batteries would require stopping an uncontrolled overheating reaction called “thermal runaway,” in which the battery gets hotter and hotter, and short-circuits spread from one battery cell to another.
The battery problems are not necessarily linked to their manufacturer and could come from the myriads of parts and systems connected to the battery.
Separately, the Japanese ministry said this week it had found the ANA jet’s auxiliary power unit had been erroneously wired to the main battery that overheated.
ANA, which has 17 Dreamliners in its fleet, and JAL, with seven, have had to cancel hundreds of flights over the 787 woes.
JAL and ANA have released plans for flights without the 787 through the end of March, but have not said what they plan to do in the long term. Both companies have said they are ready to seek compensation from Boeing.
Japan probe finds miswiring of battery on Boeing 787 'Dreamliner'
A probe into the overheating of a lithium ion battery in an All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 found it was improperly wired, Japan‘s Transport Ministry said Wednesday.
The Transport Safety Board said in a report that the battery of the aircraft’s auxiliary power unit was incorrectly connected to the main battery that overheated, although a protective valve would have prevented power from the APU from doing damage.
Flickering of the plane’s tail and wing lights after it landed and the fact the main battery was switched off led the investigators to conclude there was an abnormal current traveling from the APU due to miswiring.
The agency said that more analysis was needed to determine what caused the main battery to overheat and emit the smoke that prompted the Jan. 16 emergency landing of the ANA domestic flight and the worldwide grounding of Boeing 787 jets. They said they are consulting Boeing about the issue.
The Federal Aviation Administration and aviation authorities in other countries grounded 787 fleets because of the ANA incident which followed a battery fire earlier in January in a 787 parked in Boston.
The 787, dubbed the Dreamliner by Boeing, is the first airliner to make extensive use of lithium ion batteries, which are lighter weight, charge faster and contain more energy than conventional batteries similar in size. However, the batteries also are more prone to overheating and catching fire.
787 battery approval should be reconsidered, top accident investigator says
The U.S. government should reassess its safety approval of the Boeing 787 lithium ion batteries, the nation’s top accident investigator said Thursday.
National Transportation Safety Board Chairman Deborah Hersman said the board’s investigation of last month’s battery fire in a Japan Airlines 787 “Dreamliner” while it was parked in Boston shows the fire started with multiple short-circuits in one of the battery’s eight cells. That created an uncontrolled chemical reaction known as “thermal runaway” and spread to the rest of the cells, she said.
That’s at odds with what Boeing told the Federal Aviation Administration when the agency was working to certify the innovative aircraft for flight, Hersman said. The manufacturer asserted its testing showed that any short circuiting could be contained within a single cell, preventing thermal runaway and fire, she said.
Boeing’s testing also showed the batteries were likely to cause smoke in only 1 in 10 million flight hours, she said. But the Boston fire was followed nine days later by a smoking battery in an All Nippon Airways plane that made an emergency landing in Japan.
The 787, Boeing’s newest and most technologically advanced plane, has recorded less than 100,000 flight hours, Hersman noted.
The same day as the ANA emergency landing, FAA officials ordered the only U.S. carrier with 787s — United Airlines, which has six of the planes — to ground them. Aviation authorities in other countries swiftly followed suit. In all, 50 planes operated by seven airlines in six countries are grounded.
The groundings have become a nightmare for the company, which has about 800 Dreamliner orders from airlines around the world.
The 787 is the first airliner to make extensive use of lithium batteries. Aircraft makers view the batteries, which are lighter and can store more energy than other types of batteries of an equivalent size, as an important way to save on fuel costs. The Airbus A350, expected to be ready next year, will also make extensive use of lithium ion batteries. Manufacturers are also looking to retrofit existing planes, replacing other types of batteries with lithium ion.
But lithium batteries are more likely to short circuit and start a fire than other batteries if they are damaged, if there is a manufacturing flaw or if they are exposed to excessive heat.
Signs of runaway heat seen in Boeing 787 Dreamliner batteries
An investigation into a lithium ion battery that overheated on a Boeing 787 flight in Japan last month found evidence of the same type of “thermal runaway” seen in a similar incident in Boston, officials said Tuesday.
The Japan Transportation Safety Board said that CAT scans and other analysis found damage to all eight cells in the battery that overheated on the All Nippon Airways 787 on Jan. 16, which prompted an emergency landing and probes by both U.S. and Japanese aviation safety regulators.
They also found signs of short-circuiting and “thermal runaway,” a chemical reaction in which rising temperature causes progressively hotter temperatures. U.S. investigators found similar evidence in the battery that caught fire last month on a Japan Airlines 787 parked in Boston.
Photos distributed by the Japanese investigators show severe charring of six of the eight cells in the ANA 787’s battery and a frayed and broken earthing wire — meant to minimize the risk of electric shock.
All 50 Boeing 787s in operation are grounded as regulators and Boeing investigate the problem. The Japanese probe is focusing on flight data records and on the charger and other electrical systems connected to the damaged battery.
Lithium ion batteries are more susceptible to catching fire when they overheat or to short-circuit than other types of batteries. Boeing built in safeguards to gain safety certification for use of the relatively light and powerful batteries to power various electrical systems on the 787, the world’s first airliner made mostly from lightweight composite materials.
Investigators earlier said they found no evidence of quality problems with production of the 787’s batteries by Kyoto, Japan-based, GS Yuasa, whose own aerospace ambitions are on the line.
Yuasa said Tuesday that its April-December net profit fell 3.6 percent to $59.6 million from a year earlier, as demand for batteries lagged due to sluggish demand in Japan and overseas.
The company has struggled to turn its lithium ion business to profitability. In April-December its lithium ion business posted a $78.2 million loss, it said, compared with an operating loss of 3.26 billion yen in the full-year that ended March 31, 2012.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Japan to send investigators to US for 787 probe
Japan‘s Civil Aviation Bureau is sending investigators looking into problems with Boeing 787 batteries to Seattle, where the aircraft are assembled.
The Transport Ministry said members of the team working on the investigation would leave Tokyo on Sunday for Seattle. It provided no further details.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing earlier dispatched investigators to join the probe in Japan.
All 50 Boeing 787s in use were grounded after a lithium-ion battery in a 787 flight by All Nippon Airways on Jan. 16 overheated, forcing an emergency landing. Earlier in January, a 787 operated by ANA‘s rival Japan Airlines suffered a battery fire while parked at a Boston airport.
Investigators on both sides are trying to determine why the batteries have overheated and how to fix the problem.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
ANA sticks to forecast despite grounding of 787s
Japan’s All Nippon Airways is sticking to its profit forecast despite flight cancellations caused by the worldwide grounding of Boeing 787 jets.
ANA, which is currently the biggest customer for the Dreamliner with 17 of the jets in its fleet, said Thursday that 459 domestic and international flights were canceled this month because of the grounding, causing about 1.4 billion yen ($15.4 million) in lost revenue. It said it was unclear when the aircraft will be cleared by regulators to fly again.
All 50 Boeing 787s in use around the world were grounded earlier this month after a lithium-ion battery in a 787 operated by ANA overheated.
ANA is projecting a 40 billion yen profit for the fiscal year through March 2013, up nearly 12 percent from the previous year.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
ANA says to delay mid-term plan due to Boeing 787 grounding
Japan’s All Nippon Airways said on Thursday it would delay the release of its two-year business plan initially slated for early February to the end of April because of the grounding of Boeing Co‘s 787 Dreamliner jets.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox Business Headlines
ANA: Jan cancellations to cause $15 million in decreased revenue
All Nippon Airways said on Thursday its flight cancellations in January due to the grounding of Boeing Co‘s 787 Dreamliner jet would result in 1.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox Business Headlines
US investigators ask Boeing to provide history of batteries in wake of overheating problems
U.S. investigators said Wednesday they asked Boeing Co. to provide a full operating history of lithium-ion batteries used in its grounded 787 Dreamliners after Japan‘s All Nippon Airways revealed it had repeatedly replaced the batteries even before overheating problems surfaced.
National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Peter Knudson said the agency made the request after recently becoming aware of battery problems at ANA that occurred before a Jan. 7 battery fire in a 787 parked at Boston’s Logan International Airport. Boeing has already collected some of the information, he said.
ANA said it had replaced batteries on its 787 aircraft some 10 times because they didn’t charge properly or connections with electrical systems failed, and informed Boeing about the swaps. Japan Airlines also said it had replaced 787 batteries. It described the number involved as a few but couldn’t immediately give further details.
All 50 of the Boeing 787s in use around the world remain grounded after an ANA flight on Jan. 16 made an emergency landing in Japan when its main battery overheated.
The 787 is the first airliner to make wide use of lithium-ion batteries. They are prone to overheating and require additional safeguards to prevent fires. However, ANA spokeswoman Megumi Tezuka said the airline was not required to report the battery replacements to Japan‘s Transport Ministry because they did not interfere with flights and did not raise safety concerns.
Having to replace batteries on aircraft is not uncommon and was not considered out of the ordinary, she said.
Laura Brown, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, said in Washington that the agency was checking whether the previous battery incidents had been reported by Boeing.
Boeing in Japan said it couldn’t comment while the NSTB investigation is underway. GS Yuasa, the Kyoto, Japan-based manufacturer of the batteries, said it could not comment.
With 17 of the jets, ANA was Boeing’s launch customer for the technologically advanced airliner. The airline has had to cancel hundreds of flights, affecting tens of thousands of people, but has sought to minimize disruptions by switching to other aircraft as much as possible. ANA and Japan Airlines are among the biggest customers for the 787 and Japanese manufacturers make about 35 percent of the aircraft.
The battery problems experienced by ANA before the emergency landing were first reported by The New York Times.
Japanese and U.S. investigators looking into the Boeing 787’s battery problems shifted their attention this week from GS Yuasa to the manufacturer of a monitoring system. That company, Kanto Aircraft Instrument Co., makes a system that monitors voltage, charging and temperature of the lithium-ion batteries.
On Tuesday, the NTSB said it was conducting a chemical analysis of internal short circuiting and thermal damage of the battery that caught fire in Boston.
The probe is also analyzing data from flight data recorders on the aircraft, the NTSB said in a statement on its website.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Japan's airlines replaced 787 batteries 10 times before failure
All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines said they replaced lithium-ion batteries in their Boeing 787 Dreamliners on multiple occasions before a battery overheating incident led to the worldwide grounding of the jets.
ANA said Wednesday it replaced batteries on its 787 aircraft some 10 times because they failed to charge properly or showed other problems, and informed Boeing about the swaps. Japan Airlines said it had also replaced lithium-ion batteries on its 787 jets but couldn’t immediately give details.
All 50 of the Boeing 787s in use around the world were grounded after an ANA flight on Jan. 16 made an emergency landing in Japan when its main battery overheated. Earlier in January, a battery in a Japan Airlines 787 caught fire while parked at Boston’s Logan International Airport. Lithium-ion batteries are prone to overheating and require additional safeguards to prevent fires.
ANA spokeswoman Megumi Tezuka said the airline was not required to report the battery replacements to Japan‘s Transport Ministry because they did not interfere with flights and did not raise safety concerns. She said that having to replace batteries on aircraft is not uncommon and that it was not considered out of the ordinary.
Laura Brown, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman, said in Washington that the agency was checking whether the previous battery incidents had been reported by Boeing.
The National Transportation Safety Board on Tuesday asked Boeing to provide a full operating history of the lithium-ion batteries used in its grounded 787s.
With 17 of the jets, ANA was Boeing’s launch customer for the technologically advanced airliner. The airline has had to cancel hundreds of flights, affecting tens of thousands of people, but has sought to minimize disruptions by switching to other aircraft as much as possible.
The battery problems experienced by ANA before the emergency landing were first reported by The New York Times.
Japanese and U.S. investigators looking into the Boeing 787’s battery problems shifted their attention this week from the battery-maker, GS Yuasa of Kyoto, Japan, to the manufacturer of a monitoring system. That company, Kanto Aircraft Instrument Co. makes a system that monitors voltage, charging and temperature of the lithium-ion batteries.
On Tuesday, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said it was conducting a chemical analysis of internal short circuiting and thermal damage of the battery that caught fire in Boston.
The probe is also analyzing data from flight data recorders on the aircraft, the NTSB said in a statement on its website.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Japan airlines replaced 787 batteries many times
All Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines said they replaced lithium-ion batteries in their Boeing 787 Dreamliners on multiple occasions before a battery overheating incident led to the worldwide grounding of the jets.
ANA said Wednesday it replaced batteries on its 787 aircraft some 10 times because they failed to charge properly or showed other problems, and informed Boeing about the swaps. Japan Airlines said it had also replaced lithium-ion batteries on its 787 jets but couldn’t immediately give details.
All 50 of the Boeing 787s in use around the world were grounded after an ANA flight on Jan. 16 made an emergency landing in Japan when its main battery overheated. Earlier in January, a battery in a Japan Airlines 787 caught fire while parked at Boston’s Logan International Airport. Lithium-ion batteries are prone to overheating and require additional safeguards to prevent fires.
ANA spokeswoman Megumi Tezuka said the airline was not required to report the battery replacements to Japan‘s Transport Ministry because they did not interfere with flights and did not raise safety concerns. She said that having to replace batteries on aircraft is not uncommon and that it was not considered out of the ordinary.
Laura Brown, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman, said in Washington that the agency was checking whether the previous battery incidents had been reported by Boeing.
With 17 of the jets, ANA was Boeing’s launch customer for the technologically advanced airliner. The airline has had to cancel hundreds of flights, affecting tens of thousands of people, but has sought to minimize disruptions by switching to other aircraft as much as possible.
The battery problems experienced by ANA before the emergency landing were first reported by The New York Times.
Japanese and U.S. investigators looking into the Boeing 787’s battery problems shifted their attention this week from the battery-maker, GS Yuasa of Kyoto, Japan, to the manufacturer of a monitoring system. That company, Kanto Aircraft Instrument Co. makes a system that monitors voltage, charging and temperature of the lithium-ion batteries.
On Tuesday, the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board said it was conducting a chemical analysis of internal short circuiting and thermal damage of the battery that caught fire in Boston.
The probe is also analyzing data from flight data recorders on the aircraft, the NTSB said in a statement on its website.
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Associated Press writer Joan Lowy in Washington contributed to this report.
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Follow Elaine Kurtenbach on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ekurtenbach
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Joint US and Japan Boeing 787 probe shifts to monitoring system maker
The joint U.S. and Japanese investigation into the Boeing 787’s battery problems has shifted from the battery-maker to the manufacturer of a monitoring system.
Japan transport ministry official Shigeru Takano said Monday the probe into battery-maker GS Yuasa was over for now as no evidence was found it was the source of the problems.
Ministry officials said they will inspect Kanto Aircraft Instrument Co. on Monday as part of the ongoing investigation. It makes a system that monitors voltage, charging and temperature of the lithium-ion batteries.
All 50 of the Boeing 787s in use around the world are grounded after one of the jets operated by All Nippon Airways made an emergency landing in Japan earlier this month when its main battery overheated. Earlier in January, a battery in a Japan Airlines 787 caught fire while parked at Boston’s Logan International Airport.
GS Yuasa shares jumped on the news it is no longer being investigated, gaining nearly 5 percent in Tokyo trading. The issue had plunged 12 percent after the battery problems surfaced in Japan.
Ministry officials stopped short of saying that Kanto’s monitoring system was under any special scrutiny, saying it was part of an ongoing investigation.
“We are looking into affiliated parts makers,” Takano said. “We are looking into possibilities.”
Kyoto-based GS Yuasa declined to comment, noting that the investigation was still underway.
Deliveries of the jet dubbed the Dreamliner were three years behind schedule because of manufacturing delays. Much of the aircraft is made by outside manufacturers, many of them major Japanese companies who make about 35 percent of the plane.
It is the first jet to make wide use of lithium-ion batteries, the kind usually found in laptops and other gadgets. They are prone to overheating and require additional systems to avoid fires.
Investigators have been looking at the remnants of the ANA flight’s charred battery, but it is unclear whether the battery or a related part was behind its overheating. Investigators have said the ANA battery and the JAL battery did not receive excess voltage.
Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways was the “launch customer” for the 787, and has been forced to cancel services — 643 domestic flights through Feb. 12, affecting 69,000 passengers, and 195 international flights through Feb. 18, affecting 13,620 passengers.
Japan Airlines, which has fewer 787s than ANA, has deployed other aircraft in its fleet, minimizing its flight cancellations.
Boeing, which competes against Airbus of France, has halted 787 deliveries. Boeing has orders for more than 800 of the Dreamliner planes.
The 787 is the first airliner made mostly from lightweight composite materials that boost fuel efficiency. It also relies on electronic systems rather than hydraulic or mechanical systems to a greater degree than any other airliner.
Analysts say customers won’t come back to the 787 unless its safety is solidly assured.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Japan probe finds 787 battery not overcharged
A lithium ion battery on a Boeing 787 that overheated during an All Nippon Airways flight earlier this month, prompting an emergency landing, was not overcharged, Japan‘s transport safety agency said Wednesday.
Japan Transport Safety Board chairman Norihiro Goto told reporters the flight’s data recorder showed the main battery, used to power many electrical systems on the jet, was not overcharged.
That contradicts an earlier finding by the agency as it investigates with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration.
All 50 of the 787 Dreamliners that Boeing has delivered to airlines were grounded after the emergency landing by the ANA flight on Jan. 16. Boeing has halted deliveries of new planes until it can address the electrical problems.
Goto said the maximum voltage recorded for the battery was 31 volts, which was below its 32 volt limit. But the data also showed a sudden, unexplained drop in the battery’s voltage, he said.
Aircraft do not usually use the kind of lithium ion battery chosen for the 787, and investigators are still struggling to figure out what may have gone wrong.
“It’s not that it is difficult, but that we are not so familiar with it,” Goto said.
The Transport Safety Board said it also will study the aircraft’s auxiliary battery and compare data from each.
Investigators from both sides are probing the maker of the charred battery, GS Yuasa, and are examining it using CAT scans at a facility of Japan‘s aerospace agency.
U.S. investigators also said that they found no evidence of overcharging in a battery that ignited on a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 as it sat on the tarmac in Boston’s airport.
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News
Probe turns to Boeing 787's battery maker
Japanese and U.S. investigators began a probe Monday into the maker of the lithium ion batteries used in Boeing’s grounded 787 jets.
Tsutomu Nishijima, a spokesman for GS Yuasa, the battery manufacturer, said investigators visited the company’s headquarters in Kyoto, Japan, and that Yuasa was cooperating with the probe.
All 50 of the 787 Dreamliners that Boeing has delivered to airlines were grounded after an overheated battery forced the emergency landing of an All Nippon Airways 787 flight last week in western Japan. Boeing has halted deliveries of new planes until it can address the electrical problems.
Monday’s investigation involved an introductory meeting and factory tour, with deeper studies into product quality and other issues to follow as the probe continues, said Tatsuyuki Shimazu, the chief air worthiness engineer at the Civil Aviation Bureau’s Aviation Safety Department.
Two investigators from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and an investigator from Japan‘s government were conducting the probe into how the batteries are made and assembled and into any quality issues, he said.
“We are in the midst of collecting information, so as to whether there is a problem or not has not yet been determined,” Shimazu said.
Japanese transportation officials appear to be focusing their investigation more directly on GS Yuasa, which is based in Japan. U.S. investigators appear to be focusing on the entire electrical system and how it interacts with the batteries. The FAA was concerned a few years back about the use of lithium-ion batteries, which are prone to overheating.
Nishijima of GS Yuasa said he could not comment on details of the investigation.
The burned insides of the ANA battery showed it received voltage in excess of its design limits. However, a battery that caught fire in a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 in Boston earlier this month was found not to have been overcharged.
U.S. government investigators said there could still be problems with wiring or other charging components.
In the U.S., investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board planned to meet Tuesday with officials from Securaplane Technologies Inc., manufacturer of the charger for the 787s lithium ion batteries, at the company’s headquarters in Tucson, Ariz., said Kelly Nantel, a spokeswoman for the board.
The Associated Press contributed to this report
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News
Battery that burned on grounded Boeing was not overcharged, NTSB says
The battery that caught fire in a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 in Boston earlier this month was not overcharged, but government investigators said there could still be problems with wiring or other charging components.
An examination of the flight data recorder indicated that the battery didn’t exceed its designed voltage of 32 volts, the National Transportation Safety Board said in a statement.
NTSB investigators are continuing to look at the battery system. They plan to meet Tuesday with officials from Securaplane Technologies Inc., manufacturer of the charger for the 787s lithium ion batteries, at the company’s headquarters in Tucson, Arizona, said Kelly Nantel, a spokeswoman for the board.
“Potentially there could be some other charging issue,” Nantel said. “We’re not prepared to say there was no charging issue.”
Even though it appears the voltage limit wasn’t exceeded in the case of the Japan Airlines 787 battery that caught fire on Jan. 7 in Boston, it’s possible that the battery failures in that plane and in an All Nippon Airways plane that made an emergency landing in Japan last week may be due to a charging problem, according to John Goglia, a former NTSB board member and aviation safety expert.
Too much current flowing too fast into a battery can overwhelm the battery, causing it to short-circuit and overheat even if the battery’s voltage remains within its design limit, he said.
“The battery is like a big sponge,” Goglia said. “You can feed it with an eye dropper or you can feed it with a garden hose. If allowed, it will soak up everything it can from the garden hose until it destroys itself.”
There are so many redundancies and safeguards in aviation that when an accident or mishap occurs, it almost always is the result of a chain of events rather than a single failure, he said.
The Japan Airlines plane caught fire Jan. 7 while it was sitting on the tarmac at Boston’s Logan Airport. In a separate incident on Jan. 16, an ANA flight made an emergency landing in western Japan after a cockpit message warned of battery problems and a burning smell was detected in the cockpit and cabin. An investigator in Japan said Friday that the burned insides of the plane’s lithium ion battery show the battery received voltage in excess of its design limits.
Since then, all 50 787s that Boeing has delivered to airlines’ fleets have been grounded, and the manufacturer has halted deliveries of new planes until it can address the electrical problems.
The batteries in two incidents “had a thermal overrun because they short-circuited,” Goglia said. “The question is whether it was a manufacturing flaw in the battery or whether it was induced by battery charging.”
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News