Ethiopian Airlines has announced that it intends to continue flying its fleet of Boeing 787 Dreamliners, despite last week’s dramatic incident in which one caught fire at London Heathrow Airport.
The event led to major delays in UK air traffic after it caused the runways of Heathrow, the third busiest airport in the world, to be closed for one and a half hours.
Forty-two short-haul flights were cancelled entirely, with most passengers put on alternative flights or carriers to their chosen destinations.
No-one was injured in the fire, which took place while the aircraft was parked.
Investigators from the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) are currently looking into the cause of the blaze. Initial reports suggest that the conflagration was unrelated to the plane’s batteries, previously the biggest point of concern: earlier this year all 50 Boeing 787 Dreamliners in service worldwide were grounded after two incidents involving their batteries caused concerns that they could cause a fire. The planes eventually returned to the skies after modifications were made.
In a statement this week, Ethiopian Airlines – which took delivery of four Dreamliners in 2011 – said: “we have not grounded any of our aircraft.”
”The incident at Heathrow happened while the plane was on the ground… and was not related to flight safety.”
Other flight operators have similarly affirmed their commitment to the Dreamliner brand. British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, who are due to make their newly delivered fleets of the aircraft operational over the next year, have not announced any reversal to their plans.
The Boeing 787 Dreamliner is marketed as a quiet, fuel-efficient aircraft carrying between 210 and 330 passengers on medium-range routes. It was due to enter passenger service in 2008 but it was not until October 2011 that it saw its first commercial flight, operated by Japan’s All Nippon Airways.
Ethiopian Airlines, which is so far the only African operator to make use of the Dreamliner, were the first to resume commercial flights with the craft after this year’s mass grounding.
