Dreamliner investigated
After a jet engine sparked a grass fire at a South Carolina airport, Boeing Co. is again investigating its problem-plagued 787 Dreamliner passenger aircraft.
Boeing said it had launched an investigation after an "engine issue" hit a test flight of the 787 Dreamliner in South Carolina.
"A 787 experienced an engine issue July 28 while undergoing preflight runway testing in North Charleston. Boeing and GE are working closely with the NTSB (National Transportation Safety Board) and are committed to resolving the issue appropriately," the aviation giant said in a statement.
The fire occurred Saturday while the jet was undergoing preflight runway testing at Charleston International Airport in Charleston, S.C. Although the airport shut down briefly, there were no injuries.
"While the investigation is in its early stages, we are unaware of any operational issue that would present concerns about the continued safe operation of in-service 787s powered by GE engines," the statement added.
Still "should the investigation determine a need to act, Boeing has the processes in place to take action and will do so appropriately," it said.
US media reported that a brush fire was set off, apparently by the debris, at the Charleston airport, which had to be shut down for more than an hour.
NTSB and Boeing investigators say it is early to blame the incident on the engines. "It's not unusual for us to look at a particular event like this and gather information," he said. "It's the investigator's first full day at the scene.".
GE said about 80 of the new engines are in service, and they have accumulated more than 125,000 flight hours..
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The Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways' took delivery of the Dreamliner after a delay of three years of the set date. Just last week, five of the Japanese carrier's 787 Dreamliner commercial airplanes were grounded because of corrosion found during testing in jet engines made by Rolls Royce.
Boeing believed the problem could be traced to changes to a manufacturing process.
The NTSB does not know when it will complete its work on the recent incident in Charleston because it's so early in the information collecting process.
