Thursday, April 24, 2014

Broken wings delay Dreamliner delivery

New Delhi: After a spate of technical glitches, Boeing Dreamliner is now giving structural nightmares to Air India. The B-787 that AI was supposed to take delivery of this month in the US has developed hairline cracks on its carbon-fiber composite wings.
In fact, a number of other Dreamliners under varying stages of assembly in the US have also developed similar problems, delaying their delivery to respective airlines. AI is now hoping that Boeing will be able to resolve the latest problem with the Dreamliner and expects to get its 14th plane next month.
"We have 13 B-787s in our fleet presently. The 14th one was to be delivered to AI in US this month. But the discovery of hairline cracks in the wings of this plane has delayed its delivery. A number of other B-787s under assembly have also suffered the same issue. Boeing has told us that this aircraft will be delivered to us in May," said a senior official.
"None of the in-service Dreamliners, or at least those with AI, have the cracks-in-wings problem. The AI Dreamliners are perfectly safe to fly. It is only the undelivered planes that have suffered this issue and Boeing is working on that. Also, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has assured all airlines that it will ensure this problem is satisfactorily sorted out before these planes are delivered," said the official.
24/04/14 Saurabh Sinha/Times of India
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