UAL 787 loses speed in cruise, diverts
12-05-2012, 02:28 AM
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UAL 787 loses speed in cruise, diverts
A new Boeing 787 Dreamliner flown by United Airlines was diverted in midflight to New Orleans on Tuesday because of concern about a possible mechanical problem. Go to your Portfolio »
The plane was headed to Newark from Houston when it descended over a 10-minute span to 31,000 feet from 41,000 feet and slowed to 480 miles an hour from 655, according to FlightAware.com, a data provider.
The plane, which carried 174 passengers and 10 crew members, then rapidly recovered its speed and turned sharply to the south over Mississippi, according to the Web site’s flight log.
After the incident, United, the first North American carrier to fly the new planes, was examining one of the jet’s generators, units that provide electrical power to the plane’s engines, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
United and Boeing both said it was too early to determine the cause of the incident.
Boeing introduced the 787, the first passenger jet made substantially of lightweight carbon composites to save fuel, with fanfare just over a year ago. Production problems delayed work on the planes for several years, so aviation experts have been watching to see if the planes live up to their billing.
The generator is near an electrical equipment bay behind the wing, where a fire broke out on a 787 test plane in 2010. But after the United jet landed in New Orleans on Tuesday, no fire or arcing on the wires in the electrical panel was found.
United took delivery of the plane on Nov. 20. Boeing has delivered 38 of the 787s to eight foreign and domestic airlines.
Separately, Boeing said Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration had ordered inspections of fuel line connectors on all those 787’s. It said two connectors had been improperly installed on the planes and it had already inspected half of them.
The plane was headed to Newark from Houston when it descended over a 10-minute span to 31,000 feet from 41,000 feet and slowed to 480 miles an hour from 655, according to FlightAware.com, a data provider.
The plane, which carried 174 passengers and 10 crew members, then rapidly recovered its speed and turned sharply to the south over Mississippi, according to the Web site’s flight log.
After the incident, United, the first North American carrier to fly the new planes, was examining one of the jet’s generators, units that provide electrical power to the plane’s engines, according to a person with knowledge of the situation.
United and Boeing both said it was too early to determine the cause of the incident.
Boeing introduced the 787, the first passenger jet made substantially of lightweight carbon composites to save fuel, with fanfare just over a year ago. Production problems delayed work on the planes for several years, so aviation experts have been watching to see if the planes live up to their billing.
The generator is near an electrical equipment bay behind the wing, where a fire broke out on a 787 test plane in 2010. But after the United jet landed in New Orleans on Tuesday, no fire or arcing on the wires in the electrical panel was found.
United took delivery of the plane on Nov. 20. Boeing has delivered 38 of the 787s to eight foreign and domestic airlines.
Separately, Boeing said Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration had ordered inspections of fuel line connectors on all those 787’s. It said two connectors had been improperly installed on the planes and it had already inspected half of them.
12-05-2012, 06:20 AM
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Originally Posted by Laxrox43
...I didn't know that the generators provided power to the engines...? Got to love the media!
Some airplanes, including the CRJ-900 IIRC, do have dedicated generators to power the FADEC control system.
But I doubt they would be located in an equipment bay, they would be mounted on the engine.
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