Japan Airlines Co. said it detected smoke from the battery on a
Boeing Co. 787 Dreamliner parked at Narita Airport in Tokyo,
focusing fresh attention on the batteries a year after the advanced
jetliner was grounded world-wide for battery problems.
Japan Airlines said the white smoke was detected Tuesday at
around 4:15 p.m. Japan time, by a mechanic who was checking the
cockpit before the departure of the plane, which was bound for
Bangkok later that evening. The mechanic saw the smoke just outside
the window, and it was gone by the time the person went outside to
check.
A check of the cockpit displays right after that showed signs of
problems in the main battery and its charger, JAL said in a written
statement about the incident. When the battery was checked, the
mechanic found the relief valve had vented on one of the eight
lithium-ion cells that are contained in each battery, and liquid
had sprayed inside the battery container.
The incident comes almost exactly a year after the Jan. 16,
2013, grounding of the 787 fleet in response to incidents of
burning lithium-ion batteries on two 787s, one operated by JAL and
the other by ANA Holdings Inc. The two Japanese carriers are
currently the biggest operators of the Dreamliner.
The global 787 fleet was cleared to return to service 3 1/2
months later after Boeing developed a series of modifications to
the jet's battery systems, including a containment box and venting
system in case batteries fail.
Boeing on Tuesday didn't say what might have caused the latest
incident. But it said the "improvements made to the 787 battery
system last year appear to have worked as designed." The company
didn't elaborate.
A Boeing spokesman said it was collecting additional information
about the incident. Boeing said it regretted any impact caused to
the airline and was working to return the jet to service.
JAL said that there was no effect from the battery problem on
the space where the battery was located, or surrounding
structures.
The airline is still checking into the cause of the problem.
JAL substituted another Boeing 787 for the plane with the
affected battery, the company said.
Write to Jon Ostrower at jon.ostrower@wsj.com and Phred Dvorak
at phred.dvorak@wsj.com
Subscribe to WSJ: http://online.wsj.com?mod=djnwires