Boeing 787 investigation turns to battery maker
TOKYO (AP) - Japanese and U.S. investigators began a probe into the maker of the lithium ion batteries used in Boeing's grounded 787 jets.
Tsutomu Nishijima, a spokesman for GS Yuasa, the battery manufacturer, said investigators visited the company's headquarters in Kyoto, Japan, on Monday and that Yuasa was cooperating with the probe.
All 50 of the 787 Dreamliners that Boeing has delivered to airlines were grounded after an overheated battery forced the emergency landing of an All Nippon Airways 787 flight last week in western Japan. Boeing has halted deliveries of new planes until it can address the electrical problems.
Monday's investigation involved an introductory meeting and factory tour, with deeper studies into product quality and other issues to follow as the probe continues, said Tatsuyuki Shimazu, the chief air worthiness engineer at the Civil Aviation Bureau's Aviation Safety Department.
Two investigators from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and an investigator from Japan's government were conducting the probe into how the batteries are made and assembled and into any quality issues, he said.
"We are in the midst of collecting information, so as to whether there is a problem or not has not yet been determined," Shimazu said.
Nishijima of GS Yuasa said he could not comment on details of the investigation.
The burned insides of the ANA battery showed it received voltage in excess of its design limits. However, a battery that caught fire in a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 in Boston earlier this month was found not to have been overcharged.
U.S. government investigators said there could still be problems with wiring or other charging components.
In the U.S., investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board planned to meet Tuesday with officials from Securaplane Technologies Inc., manufacturer of the charger for the 787s lithium ion batteries, at the company's headquarters in Tucson, Ariz., board spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said.
Tsutomu Nishijima, a spokesman for GS Yuasa, the battery manufacturer, said investigators visited the company's headquarters in Kyoto, Japan, on Monday and that Yuasa was cooperating with the probe.
All 50 of the 787 Dreamliners that Boeing has delivered to airlines were grounded after an overheated battery forced the emergency landing of an All Nippon Airways 787 flight last week in western Japan. Boeing has halted deliveries of new planes until it can address the electrical problems.
Monday's investigation involved an introductory meeting and factory tour, with deeper studies into product quality and other issues to follow as the probe continues, said Tatsuyuki Shimazu, the chief air worthiness engineer at the Civil Aviation Bureau's Aviation Safety Department.
Two investigators from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration and an investigator from Japan's government were conducting the probe into how the batteries are made and assembled and into any quality issues, he said.
"We are in the midst of collecting information, so as to whether there is a problem or not has not yet been determined," Shimazu said.
Nishijima of GS Yuasa said he could not comment on details of the investigation.
The burned insides of the ANA battery showed it received voltage in excess of its design limits. However, a battery that caught fire in a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 in Boston earlier this month was found not to have been overcharged.
U.S. government investigators said there could still be problems with wiring or other charging components.
In the U.S., investigators from the National Transportation Safety Board planned to meet Tuesday with officials from Securaplane Technologies Inc., manufacturer of the charger for the 787s lithium ion batteries, at the company's headquarters in Tucson, Ariz., board spokeswoman Kelly Nantel said.
Talk about a nuclear meltdown!Â
If the battery was receiving voltage than it was being re-charged in which case there should be some type of regulator to ensure that it was getting the correct voltage. The battery in the picture looks like it was hooked up to a Tesla coil.
In the corporate world, this is a time-honored method of dealing with a problem. It's called "Blame the Vendor."
 @Max Quinn Ah those types of batteries are known to be dangerous. One just like it almost burned down my house five years ago when it was recharging.
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Anyone who uses that type of battery for hobbies like RC airplanes and helicopters knows there's a huge risk of fire when they are charging.
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They store a tremendous amount of energy and if there's even a little short they can catch on fire and they burn readily producing their own oxygen making extinguishing the fire even more challenging.
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So before you go on your corporate rant you might want to realize that this could be a very real issue with the vendor...
 @FreedomRocks Yes and no. When you buy something from a vendor, you provide a set of specs that it must match. When you receive the product, you test it to ensure the quality.
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So, Boeing could have provided the wrong specs or the vendor might not have met the specs or both. In any situation, this sort of thing should be caught beforehand - especially given the frequency at which it occurred.
 @Max Quinn Well and quite possibly both sides met those specs and it's simply an issue in the reduction line unrelated to the design. Could be just a simple flaw in one of the batteries as the one that almost burned my house down. These failures don't always come to light until the battery is sufficiently stressed.
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I'm pretty confident though that investigators will get to the bottom of it given the potential severity of failing to. The number of lawsuits going would have to encounter would be horrendous so I guarantee you they want to get it resolved. Not to mention the fact this was supposed to be their big moneymaker for the next 10 years which nobody will buy if it's dangerous.