Nearly one year after a fire started aboard a Japan Airlines Boeing 787 at Logan International Airport in Boston, the National Transportation Safety Board said it expects to finish its investigation by the end of March.
But the probable cause of the battery fire won’t be be made public until the fall, the NTSB said today in a news release.
Following the completion of the investigation, NTSB will write its analysis and report about the Jan. 7, 2013 fire. The final report is expected to be presented to the NTSB board at a public meeting in Washington in the fall. A date has not been determined yet.
Members of the investigative team have been conducting work in the United States, Japan, France and Taiwan.
“As the investigation has progressed, the NTSB has been working closely with Boeing, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Japan Transport Safety Bureau, the French BEA, and technical advisors from Japan and France,” a NTSB statement said.
The investigation team has:
— Completed disassembly of the incident battery cells
Completed examinations of exemplar batteries and battery cells for baseline reference and comparison to the incident battery
— Awarded a contract to Underwriter’s Laboratories to assist the NTSB in defining and performing system-level tests of the Boeing 787 battery and charging system. The testing includes characterization of the thermal and electrochemical properties of the battery and oscillatory testing and is expected to be completed in February.
— Conducted radiographic studies, which included over 200,000 CT scan images, to document both incident and exemplar batteries
— Conducted interviews with FAA, Boeing, Thales and GS Yuasa personnel to review and document key steps, personnel roles and responsibilities, data and information flow, design artifacts, and approvals in the certification process for the battery and charging system.
— Evaluated and documented the process for the battery system safety assessment, including a review of the supporting tests and analysis performed and the safety analysis standards relevant for lithium-ion batteries
— Conducted an on-site survey of a battery manufacturing facility in Japan including a review of design, engineering, and production documentation, as well as manufacturing processes, procedures and training for personnel involved in the manufacture of the battery
Source: NTSB
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