Boeing 787 Dreamliner Back in Sky
United Airlines resumed Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights after the advanced plane was globally grounded four months ago due to overheated battery incidents.
United Airlines resumed Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights after the advanced plane was globally grounded four months ago due to overheated battery incidents.
United Airlines resumed Boeing 787 Dreamliner flights after the advanced plane was globally grounded four months ago due to overheated battery incidents. Text: AFP Photo: Reuters
United, the only US carrier that owns the high-tech jetliner, relaunched 787 passenger service with a flight from the airline's hub in Houston, Texas, to Chicago, where Boeing is based, United said in a statement. Photo: Reuters
The biggest US airline, owner of six 787s, also announced it expected to take delivery of two more Dreamliners in the second half of 2013. Photo: Reuters
"The 787 offers an unmatched travel experience for our customers and co-workers, and we are thrilled to be flying it again," Jeff Smisek, United's chairman, president and chief executive, said in the statement. Photo: Reuters
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In Pic: Mark Jenks (R), Boeing's vice president of 787-9 development, speaks to an executive along the archway of the 787 Dreamliner during a demonstration flight of the aircraft at the Singapore Airshow in Singapore February 14, 2012.
The first of United's 787s to resume flight carried about 160 passengers including Smisek and Boeing chief executive James McNerney. Photo: Reuters
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In Pic:?Seats and screens are seen in the economy class cabin of Qatar Airways new Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
United confirmed its plan to launch its Denver-Tokyo route with 787 service on June 10. Photo: Reuters
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In Pic:?A view of the business class cabin of the Boeing 787 Dreamliner.
It also said it would begin 787 service in the coming months on routes including Houston-London, Los Angeles-Tokyo, Los Angeles-Shanghai and Houston-Lagos. Photo: Reuters
Two battery-related safety incidents in January -- a fire in one 787 parked in Boston and an emergency landing in another in Japan -- led regulators worldwide to ground all 50 787s in service. Photo: Reuters
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In Pic: The burnt auxiliary power unit battery (L), removed from an All Nippon Airways' (ANA) Boeing Co 787 Dreamliner plane which made an emergency landing on January 16, 2013 in Takamatsu, is seen next to an undamaged one in this, in this handout photo taken on January 17, 2013 and released by the Japan Transport Safety Board (JTSB) February 5, 2013.
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Last month the US Federal Aviation Administration approved Boeing's modifications to the 787's lithium-ion battery system, and other regulators followed suit, clearing the way for the plane to return to service. Photo: Reuters
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In Pic:?Boeing's 787 renewal battery (L) and its battery charger are displayed.
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Investigator examines the inside of a Boeing 787 under investigation at Boston's Logan International Airport in this January 8, 2013 handout photo. A fuel leak forced the Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by Japan Airlines to cancel takeoff and return to the gate at Logan International Airport January 8. Photo: Reuters