WASHINGTON - The American aerospace giant Boeing halted deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner but said it would continue to build the aircraft while safety experts examine its battery and electrical systems. The announcement capped a week in which all 50 787s in service around the world were grounded on orders from multiple aviation authorities to investigate the cause of two incidents, including a fire, linked to its batteries.
“We will not deliver 787s until the FAA approves a means of compliance with their recent Airworthiness Directive concerning batteries and the approved approach has been implemented,” a Boeing spokesman said. “Production of 787s continues,” he said. Dreamliners had been flying in Chile, Ethiopia, India, Japan, Poland, Qatar and the United States until their flights were stopped after a global alert issued by the US Federal Aviation Administration. Boeing’s chairman and chief executive Jim McNerney in a statement to employees defended his company and the aircraft against “the negative news attention over the past several days.” “As everyone inside the company knows, nothing is more important to us than the safety of the passengers, pilots and crew members who fly aboard Boeing commercial and military aircraft,” he said.”We have high confidence in the safety of the 787 and stand squarely behind its integrity as the newest addition to our product family.” His comments came as US and Japanese experts began examining an All Nippon Airways 787 forced to make an emergency landing at Takamatsu in southwest Japan on Wednesday because of a smoke alert apparently linked to a lithium-ion battery, the plane’s main electrical power unit. “We removed the battery yesterday and are today inspecting the plane and its components, alongside the US officials,” said Japan Transport Safety Board spokesman Mamoru Takahashi. A picture released by the JTSB showed scorch marks on the blue casing of the battery. Much of what looked like wiring around the eight cells of the battery — the plane’s main electrical power unit — was disfigured.