Did the FAA give Boeing too much say in Dreamliner testing?

BY Chris Sullivan  on January 18, 2013 @ 6:59 am (Updated: 4:31 pm - 1/18/13 )

AP: 66e4e976-74e4-49f8-8ed9-86007f152e57
This Jan. 17, 2013 photo provided by the Japan Transport Safety Board shows the distorted main lithium-ion battery and its lid, left, of the All Nippon Airways' Boeing 787 which made an emergency landing on Wednesday, Jan. 16, 2013 at Takamatsu airport in Takamatsu, western Japan. (AP Photo/Japan Transport Safety Board) | Zoom
UPDATE: CNBC reported Friday afternoon Boeing will officially suspend all deliveries of 787's until the plane has been approved to resume service. But the company says it will continue production.

Now that the FAA has grounded the Boeing 787, a lot a people are wondering how the agency certified the airplane in the first place, especially considering the unproven and untested batteries it uses to power its electrical systems.

Related: Boeing CEO tries to reassure employees about 787 future

The FAA and Boeing spent years working out the kinks with these 63-pound, rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, but the FAA didn't do most of the testing of the batteries, and certified them as safe for use based almost entirely on data created by Boeing.

The Wall Street Journal reports Boeing had the lead in certifying the safety and reliability of the batteries, and many analysts are now wondering if the FAA should have been more aggressive in its testing.

It's not unusual for the FAA to sign off on work and grant certification this way. It's actually the agency's standard. It doesn't have the people or the money to do this testing itself so it usually relies on companies to do most of the work and gathering of data.

Some experts are now saying that has to change as airplane manufacturers are using new technology and other unproven systems.

There's also some word on Capitol Hill that Congressional hearings into the FAA and the Dreamliner might be on the way.

Mark Rosenker is the former head of the NTSB and a CBS analyst. He doesn't believe the FAA cut any corners in certifying this airplane. "Who knows more about the aircraft than the manufacturer itself," he asked?

Rosenker said playing the blame game right now seems a little early to him. He said that can wait until Boeing, the FAA, the NTSB and everyone else investigating this battery problem finds-out exactly what's happening.

"I believe the FAA is quite competent to be able to regulate this industry."

He still believes Boeing and the Dreamliner will recover from this.

"This is not a show-stopper for this aircraft," Rosenker said. "This is just a very serious bump in the road that's going to have to be fixed, smoothed out, and we'll move-on from there."

All 50 in-service Dreamliners will remain on the ground for at least a week as the investigation continues. Meanwhile, Boeing plans to keep building its flagship jetliner while engineers try to solve battery problems that have grounded most of the 787 fleet.

Chris Sullivan, KIRO Radio Reporter
Chris loves the rush of covering breaking news and works hard to try to make sense of it all while telling stories about real people in extraordinary circumstances.
More Local News
Top Stories

  • Seeking Answers
    Investigators, engineers, and lawmakers scramble to fix I-5 after bridge collapses

  • Survivor's Tale
    "I hit the brakes and we went off"

  • Bridge Distress
    Washington has an unfortunate history of bridge disasters
MyNorthwest.com - Purpose of Comments statement
Bonneville Media encourages site users to express their opinions by posting comments. Our goal is to maintain a civil dialogue in which readers feel comfortable. At times, the comments can descend to personal attacks. Please do not engage in such behavior. We encourage your thoughtful comments which: have a positive and constructive tone, are on topic, are respectful toward others and their opinions. Bonneville reserves the right to remove comments which do not conform to these criteria.

Comments (15)


  • Add A Comment

  • sirpug wrote...
    Slow down people
    January 18, 2013 7:47 am
    Everyone need to remember that the 777 was ground a few times in it's first years for bugs that needed to be worked out. Boeing and it's suppliers will fix this and the 787 will be back up in the air soon. The only difference between the 777 launch and the 787 launch is the 24 hour news feed that beats everything to death and blows it out of proportion for ratings.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Drool wrote...
    The 777 Was Not Grounded
    January 18, 2013 8:06 am
    The last grounding by the FAA was the DC-10 back in the 70s after an engine fell off one causing a crash.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • sirpug wrote...
    You are correct...
    January 18, 2013 9:15 am
    ...however there are other regulatory agencies throughout the world that can ground 787s (and for that matter the FAA only really has authority here in the states though the world tends to follow their example). Specific airline can also ground one or more of their fleet until Boeing answers concerns. I worked as a lead mechanic at an airline and we were the launch customer for a non Boeing aircraft and the "on time" performance for that model during the first year was something like 34% due to "bugs" that had to be worked out. Overtime the reliability of the airplane became much better. The main point of my comment was that these types of issue happens regularly in aviation, and more so on a brand new model, it's just that today's news machine makes things worse then they actually are.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • adiru wrote...
    There's a difference
    January 18, 2013 8:15 am
    With a lot of problems that are typical of new planes, there are multiple system backups or reversion to manual operation. If you have a fire in flight, you can't pull over to the side of the sky and call AAA.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Gunther wrote...
    Over reaction
    January 18, 2013 8:43 am
    Every aircraft has had issues including Airbus. We have never had a media like today, that's all. Gun violence is down, but if you read watch the news you would think we are in the Wild West. The media makes money by sensationalizing everything. Boeing has done great things for Seattle as well as the nation. If it wasn't for Boeing and its employees spending money in our community we would really be hurting. Lets stand behind our Boeing employees and not tolerate congress or the media to make this bigger than what it is.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Drool wrote...
    "Blame game already starting between Boeing, FAA"
    January 18, 2013 8:48 am
    Is very misleading. There is no evidence of finger pointing between Boeing and the FAA.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Zoeller wrote...
    "airplane manufacturers are using new technology and other unproven systems."
    January 18, 2013 10:21 am
    Really????? Hasn’t this been going on ever since the first airplane was built?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    Pressure
    January 18, 2013 11:54 am
    It's far better to find the "Root cause" the actual true problem than allow Pressure to get it in the air.A "Health check" is a bandaid.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • CH wrote...
    the FAA didn't do most of the testing of the batteries, and certified them as safe for use based almost entirely on data created by Boeing -
    January 18, 2013 11:58 am
    how much was the pay off to the FFA?
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Zoeller wrote...
    CH-
    January 18, 2013 12:18 pm
    I really don’t think anybody in their right mind in the airline manufacture business would pay off the FFA (also known as Future Farmers of America).
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • CH wrote...
    And people think government regulation does something? -
    January 18, 2013 4:34 pm
    if republicans were running the show there would be no_ regulations!! I really don't think anybody in their right mind in the airline manufacture business would pay off the FFA (also known as Future Farmers of America). So Zoeller -- I really don't think anybody in their right mind in the airline manufacture business would pay off the Congress? I would say they have Congress in their hip pockets.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Newton wrote...
    Its Just Bad Batteries from China.
    January 18, 2013 4:52 pm
    They(China)make terrible Batteries. I knew that. Its to Bad Boeing Workers did not know that. Could of Stoped a Fire or two.
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • Ron_Spins wrote...
    These new batteries are anything but robust.
    January 18, 2013 7:01 pm
    .
    { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }
  • { "Thumbs Up":"1","Thumbs Down":"-1" }