Official report throws light on 787 Dreamliner fire
An investigation has concluded that an electrical fault with a battery was to blame for a fire on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner at London Heathrow in 2013.
The Ethiopian Airlines aircraft was parked at Heathrow when the fire broke out.
Both of the airport’s runways had to be closed as emergency services dealt with the blaze.
An Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) report concluded the fire was caused by wires from a lithium battery that had become trapped under a cover.
The battery had short circuited and overheated, leaking flammable materials which ignited in the ceiling of the cabin.
The report said a safety mechanism which should have prevented the overheating and the spread of flames had not worked properly.
They said the incident would have been difficult to handle if it had taken place while the aircraft was in flight.
The lithium battery powered an emergency locator transmitter, installed to help locate missing aircraft.
The AAIB report has called for the use of such equipment to be reviewed.
According to Air Cargo News, fires in consignments of lithium batteries have been implicated in the loss of three aircraft over the last decade.
Bev
Editor in chief Bev Fearis has been a travel journalist for 25 years. She started her career at Travel Weekly, where she became deputy news editor, before joining Business Traveller as deputy editor and launching the magazine’s website. She has also written travel features, news and expert comment for the Guardian, Observer, Times, Telegraph, Boundless and other consumer titles and was named one of the top 50 UK travel journalists by the Press Gazette.
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