Heathrow closed after plane fire (Dreamliner)

The FAA will be issuing an Airworthiness Directive today giving 787 operators 10 days to inspect the wiring for the Honeywell ELT, or remove them from service within that time. It calls for inspection of the wiring routing, any damage to the wiring, and any sign of thermal events within the battery casing.

Technically the AD only covers the 6 United 787s, as they're the only American operator of them so far, but other aviation authorities are expected to adopt the AD as worded by the FAA.

There may be more ADs coming out for other types in the near future. There are approximately 6,000 Honeywell ELTs in service on multiple types of aircraft.

The repair on the aircraft is about 60% complete. Boeing has replaced the crown section of the fuselage, and is believed to be replacing the interior around that area as well.

The vertical fin has been reinstalled, and the tent removed from around the fuselage. Ethiopian has announced the plane is scheduled to be used on a flight from Heathrow around the 22nd of this month.

Just spotted a quick update on this from the BBC.

A fire on a parked Boeing 787 Dreamliner jet at Heathrow Airport two years ago was probably caused by a short circuit, air accident investigators have said.
The fire was likely to have been started by two bare wires touching in a piece of location equipment, the UK Air Accidents Investigations Branch said.
It then spread through the cabin and burnt through the fuselage.
Investigators recommended tighter testing and certification of devices.
The piece of equipment that caught fire - the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) - was located near the back of the plane, and was made by Honeywell.

www.bbc.co.uk...