Boeing 787 tests progress
Company says more than half done
Boeing said it has finished more than half of the testing on its proposed battery fix for the 787, with the rest of the ground and flight tests coming in the next several days.
The test results so far have been in line with the testing Boeing did when it was developing the fix, spokesman Marc Birtel said on Wednesday.
Smoldering batteries – including one fire on the ground – prompted air safety authorities to ground the world’s 787s in mid-January. Boeing has developed what it believes is a permanent fix, including more heat insulation and a system for venting battery gases outside of the plane.
The tests under way now are aimed at demonstrating that the fix worked. Ultimately, the Federal Aviation Administration will have to certify the changes before the planes fly again.
Ground testing is continuing at Boeing labs in Seattle. Boeing is giving results to the FAA as they are finished.
The testing has been taking longer than Boeing had originally suggested when it announced the fix for the 787’s smoldering batteries on March 15.