Boeing Dreamliner flights to be allowed in Japan

TOKYO - Reuters

This file photo shows an All Nippon Airways (ANA) Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Tokyo’s Haneda airport. AFP photo

Japan said it gave the green light for Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner to resume flights, the transport minister said, allowing top customers Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways to get the cutting-edge jet back in the air.

Japan Airlines and local rival All Nippon Airways account for almost half of the 50 Dreamliners worldwide that have been grounded since mid-January following two separate lithium-ion battery incidents in Boston and western Japan.

Akihiro Ota, Japan’s transport minister, told reporters in Tokyo that aviation authorities would officially approve the resumption of Dreamliner flights for Japanese airlines later on April 26, by issuing a revised “technical circular directive.”

The move will come after the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) gave formal approval on April 25 for a new lithium-ion battery system for the Dreamliner. In addition to the battery fix approved by the FAA, Japan’s Civil Aviation Bureau will require airlines to meet the country’s own safety standards when flying the 787, which include monitoring the battery current while the jet is in the air and checking used batteries.