Boeing proposes short-term fix for 787 fires
2/19/2013SEATTLE — Boeing Co. will propose to regulators as early as this week a short-term fix to bolster the 787’s defenses in case of battery fires such as those that have kept the jet grounded for the past month.
The goal is to get the planes flying passengers again, while Boeing works on a comprehensive redesign of the lithium-ion battery system that could take nine months or more to implement.
The interim fix includes a heavy-duty titanium or steel containment box around the battery cells, and high-pressure evacuation tubes that, in the event of a battery fire, would vent any gases directly to the outside of the jet.