Japanese officials ordered the country's airlines to inspect the Boeing 787 after a fatal collision involving the 787-8 operated by Air India, but US counterparts have stopped the scope of type grounds.
According to a report from Kyodo News, the Ministry of Land, Japan, Ministry of Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT) issued instructions to all Nippon Airways and Japan Airlines, as well as Air Japan and Zipair, each of which are medium and low-cost units, to inspect the “engines and air” of 787 fleets.
Japan's two largest airlines are the leading operators of the 787, with over 130 examples.
Transport Minister Hiromasa Nakano is quoted as saying that after MLIT had collected information from operators, it would “take necessary measures” after an investigation into the crash on June 12th.
The fatal accident involved a 12-year-old 787-8 (VT-ANB) crashed after taking off from Ahmedabad at 13:38 local time.
The jet, powered by the Twin Ge Aerospace Genx Turbofans, had 242 passengers and crew. All but one died from a crash.
The crash is the first example of a fatal accident involving Boeing's flagship widebody jet, 787 Dreamliner, which has shaken the global aerospace industry as India's worst aviation accident in decades.
Indian officials have begun an investigation into the accident with support from the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and the FAA.
Meanwhile, US officials say it is “premature” to seek the 787 foundation, and say there is no immediate safety risk to do so.
Asked about this at the briefing, the representative administration of FAA Chris Rochero said, “We have … assembled a team of experts working with the NTSB and the Indian authorities. As we proceed to research and follow this path… we will mitigate those risks if there is any information available regarding the risks,” he says.
Even at the same event, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy added that it was “too early” to ground the 787.
“People are watching the video and trying to assess what happened. This is not a wise way to determine what happened,” Duffy said.
