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NTSB: Short circuit in Dreamliner's lithium ion battery led to fire
Friday, 08 February 2013
Late Thursday, the FAA gave Boeing the go-ahead to conduct limited test flights of the grounded 787 Dreamliner. On that same day, a Boeing flew an empty 787 from Texas back to its factory in Washington state. The planes were grounded three weeks ago after batteries overheated twice; one of the batteries caught fire.
Federal investigators revealed the fire aboard the Dreamliner in Boston last month began with a short circuit in one of the lithium ion battery's eight cells. That caused a dangerous condition known as "thermal runaway," where a short spreads to other cells in an uncontrolled chemical chain reaction. The fire topped 500 degrees Fahrenheit.
Late Thursday, the FAA gave Boeing the go-ahead to conduct limited test flights of the grounded 787 Dreamliner. On that same day, a Boeing flew an empty 787 from Texas back to its factory in Washington state. The planes were grounded three weeks ago after batteries overheated twice; one of the batteries caught fire. Federal investigators revealed the fire aboard the Dreamliner in Boston last month began with a short circuit in one of the lithium ion battery's eight cells. That caused a dangerous condition known as "thermal runaway," where a short spreads to other cells in an uncontrolled chemical chain reaction. The fire topped 500 degrees Fahrenheit. Read more... |
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