Honeywell Built The ELT Which Was Installed In The Area Where The Fire Occurred

The NTSB has sent investigators to assist in the investigation of a fire that occurred last week aboard a parked Boeing 787 Dreamliner at Heathrow Airport, London, England.

NTSB Senior Air Safety Investigator Lorenda Ward has been appointed as the traveling U.S. accredited representative. Ms. Ward will be accompanied by NTSB airplane systems investigators and representatives from the Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing.

The investigation is being conducted by the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) of the United Kingdom, which will release all information.

A team from Honeywell has also been sent to London. The fire reportedly occurred in an area where the plane's ELT, which is manufactured by Honeywell, is installed. The plane had been parked empty in a remote area of Heathrow airport for nearly eight hours when the fire broke out. No one was on board at the time.

The Dreamliner's batteries have already been ruled out as a cause of the fire.

The Los Angeles Times reports that Honeywell spokesman Steve Brecken said that ELTs such as the one installed on the Ethiopian Dreamliner are operating on over 3,000 airplanes from multiple manufacturers, and "we've not seen or experienced a single reported issue with this product line." He said any speculation about the device would be "premature."

Reuters reports that investigators are looking at the battery that powers the ELT as a possible culprit in the latest Dreamliner incident. The FAA reportedly told airlines that a battery installed in a Honeywell ELT had failed a test in 2009, and advised that they be replaced. Honeywell said it was checking to determine if the battery installed in the Ethiopian Dreamliner was the same model as had failed the 2009 test. The ELTs are powered by a non-rechargeable lithium-manganese battery, according to the report.

FMI: www.ntsb.gov, www.boeing.com, www.honeywell.com