JAL, ANA grounds Dreamliners after an another safety scare in Japan

JAPAN AIRLINES and All Nippon Airways Boeing 787 Dreamliners have been grounded after another emergency landing in Takamatsu, western Japan, reported Sky News.

Japan's transport ministry confirmed that it had launched its own review of the 787's safety after the same aircraft suffered another fuel leak in Tokyo during refuelling.

The Japan Transport Safety Board, an independent department within the transport ministry, has launched an investigation, saying it considered the latest problem with the Dreamliner "a serious incident that could lead to an accident".

The troubled 787 suffered its fourth safety incident within a week. A 787, also operated by JAL, suffered a fuel leak in Boston as it prepared to leave for Tokyo.

ANA said it would ground all 17 of its Dreamliner flights, while JAL also said it was suspending its 787 flights. The airlines are the two biggest single operators of the aircraft.

ANA's flight 692 from Yamaguchi airport in western Japan to Haneda, in Tokyo, landed less than an hour after take-off, after instruments in the cockpit indicated a battery malfunction and the pilot noticed a strange smell. The 129 passengers and eight crew were safely evacuated.

The aircraft already faces a wide-ranging safety review from the US Federal Aviation Administration after fire broke out in a lithium-ion battery on a 787 operated by JAL on January 7, shortly after it had arrived in Boston from Tokyo.

The following day, another 787, also operated by JAL, suffered a fuel leak in Boston as it prepared to leave for Tokyo. Japan's transport ministry confirmed on Tuesday that it had launched its own review of the 787's safety after the same aircraft suffered another fuel leak in Tokyo during refuelling.

Boeing said it was aware of the latest event but could give no more details. The FAA told Reuters it was monitoring the situation. United Airlines, so far the only US-based operator of the 787, has declined to comment. Qantas declared it would stick its order for 15 aircraft.