More fallout from the Ethiopian Airlines 787 on board fire incident, with a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issuing an air-worthiness directive which requires airlines operating the Boeing 787 to inspect or remove the Honeywell emergency locator transmitters (ELT) installed in the aircraft.
The FAA directive http://rgl.faa.gov/Regulatory_and_Guidance_Library/rgAD.nsf/0/7848e4f089b443ec86257bb40048d733/$FILE/2013-15-07.pdf – states:
An unsafe condition exists that requires the immediate adoption of this AD. The FAA has found that the risk to the flying public justifies waiving notice and comment prior to adoption of this rule because discrepancies within the Honeywell fixed ELT could cause a fire in the aft crown of the airplane. Therefore, we find that notice and opportunity for prior public comment are impracticable and that good cause exists for making this amendment effective in less than 30 days.
The directive applies to the six United Airlines 787’s in fleet. The European Aviation Safety Agency has issued similar instructions too.
Honeywell and Boeing have both supported temporarily removing or making inert 787 ELTs while Air Accidents Investigation Branch continues its investigation into the Heathrow 787 fire.
The AAIB has not reported further since the special bulletin that was published, with investigations continuing into the incident. There is still plenty of time for the investigations to continue.