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JAL Dreamliner lands on one engine after oil pressure problem
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A JAL flight (not pictured) en route to San Francisco from Tokyo had to terminate in Honolulu, Hawaii, after engine problems.
YOSHIKAZU TSUNO/AFP/Getty Images
Story highlights
JAL Tokyo to San Francisco flight diverted to Honolulu after engine oil pressure dropped
Pilots shut down engine and requested emergency landing, as per airline protocol
Comes after wing cracks discovered in 40 in-production planes
CNN
—
A Boeing 787 Dreamliner operated by Japan Airlines (JAL) was forced to land prematurely in Hawaii, after pilots shut down one of its engines.
Flight JL002 with 171 people on board was en route from Tokyo to San Francisco when an oil pressure warning was received, forcing the pilots to terminate the flight eight hours in.
“At the approach to Honolulu the oil pressure was getting low, so the engine was shutdown,” a JAL spokesperson told CNN.
“When one engine of an aircraft with twin engines is stopped, the airline must declare an emergency so the flight can have priority to be guided by air traffic control and apply for landing.
“There was no injured passenger or crew.
“It was not battery trouble; the cause is being investigated.”
The planes, like this 777 Worldliner, start with partially constructed fuselages, covered with a green, temporary protective coating.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing's giant factory
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images
Watching Boeing make giant airliners —
The aircrafts' bodies are joined and their wings are attached. Boeing's 777 holds the nonstop long distance flight record of any commercial jetliner: 11,664 nautical miles (13,422 actual miles).
Photos: Gallery: Boeing's giant factory
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images
Watching Boeing make giant airliners —
Then, engines are attached to the wings. Airliners are able to fly long distances around the globe with only two engines thanks to gigantic, efficient power plants like the 777's GE90-115B, described by Guinness as the world's most powerful commercial jet engine.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing's giant factory
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images
Watching Boeing make giant airliners —
This 19,000-pound monster is so wide, Boeing says it's theoretically possible to fit the body of a Boeing 737 airliner through it.
Large, pre-assembled portions of the Dreamliner are made in cities around the globe and flown to the Everett factory aboard a modified 747 called the Dreamlifter, which Boeing says can haul more cargo than any other aircraft in the world.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing's giant factory
Brett Deering/Getty Images
747 Dreamlifter —
In 2013, a Dreamlifter carrying a 787 fuselage landed without incident at the wrong airport in Wichita, Kansas, on a runway a half mile shorter than it usually uses. Despite the shorter runway, the Dreamlifter was able to resume its journey the following day.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing's giant factory
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images
Delivery to airlines ... and your airport —
After assembly, painting and testing, Boeing rolls out its new planes for delivery to airlines around the world.
Hairline cracks discovered
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
courtesy boeing
The 787-9 Dreamliner debut —
Boeing handed over the first 787-9 Dreamliner to Air New Zealand on July 8, 2014.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
courtesy air new zealand
All-black (nearly) edition —
The debut aircraft was painted in a special edition livery, featuring the New Zealand fern on the back end of the fuselage. Flights will initially take place between Auckland and Perth starting October 2014, and extend to Tokyo and Shanghai a month later.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
Elaine Thompson/AP
More passegers can fly further —
Boeing's 787-9 Dreamliner took off on its maiden voyage on September 17, 2013. The 787-9 is 20 feet longer and holds 40 more passengers than the 787-8, which carries between 210 and 250 passengers.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
courtesy Boeing
Cargo improvements too —
Besides carrying more passengers, the new version of the Dreamliner also can carry more cargo and fly further.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
Courtesy Boeing
Assembling the first 787-9 —
Boeing began final assembly of the first 787-9 Dreamliner in May 2013 in Everett, Washington, when employees began joining large sections of the aircraft together.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
STR/AFP/Getty Images/File
A troubled first year in the air —
The Dreamliner 787-8 got off to a rough start. In January 2013, this All Nippon Airways 787 made an emergency landing because of battery troubles. It was one of several problems encountered by the aircraft, and subsequently the FAA ordered the entire 787 fleet to be grounded, while fixes to the battery system were made. The fleet started flying again in April 2013.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
Stephen Brashear/Getty Images/File
The battery fix is tested —
A LOT Polish Airlines 787, with a redesigned lithium-ion battery system, performs a test flight at Paine Field in Everett, Washington. The Dreamliner's distinctive wings sweep back at 32 degrees.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images/File
Passenger-friendly innovations —
The use of composite materials on the Dreamliner makes larger window cutouts possible. Composites have replaced aluminum as the predominant material in the 787. The 777 is made up of 50% aluminum and 12% composites, compared with the Dreamliner's nearly 50% makeup of composites and just 20% aluminum.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
Joe Raedle/Getty Images
Learning to fly the 787 —
Pilots train on one of two 787 full-flight simulators, like the one shown here, at the company's training center in Miami. Capt. Gary Lee Beard is shown demonstrating one of the simulators.
Photos: Gallery: Boeing 787-9 dreamliner
Dreamliner flight is cause for celebration —
Air India's 787-8 Dreamliner got a water cannon salute in Australia as the country's first Dreamliner passenger flight landed in Sydney.
The diversion came just days after Boeing’s announcement that hairline cracks had been found in the wings of 40 in-production planes.
While teething problems are common with most new models of aircraft – the Dreamliner fleet was famously grounded in January 2013 after numerous problems with its battery – Boeing admits that reliability is a work in progress.
“The Dreamliner has a dispatch reliability rate of 98%,” Rob Henderson, Boeing’s communications director Japan told CNN.
“But we’re improving that all the time, to get it up to where the 777 and 737 are – above 99%.”
Dispatch reliability is the percentage of planes that leave within 15 minutes of the scheduled takeoff time, assuming no technical reasons for delay.
The Dreamliner has a dedicated “Operations Control Center” that helps assist with problems as they occur.
“The center monitors every 787 in flight; it identifies problems and works with the airline to provide maintenance, sometimes even in flight,” said Henderson.
Part of the Dreamliner’s problem has been due to heightened media scrutiny, says Tom Ballantine, chief correspondent at Orient Aviation magazine.
“Because of the early dramatic grounding of the plane every little thing that happens now gets reported,” he told CNN.
“But the Dreamliner hasn’t really become a total nightmare. New models do historically have a lot of teething problems.
“The 747 had quite a few issues when it first entered service, and hairline cracks were also found in the wings of Airbus A380s (along with other problems). But none of this was a threat to the safe operation of the aircraft, which were repaired during downtime.”
“These issues with the 787 are certainly frustrating for the airlines but you can be sure they are being well compensated. All the airlines I have spoken to think it’s a great plane with a fantastic future.”
JAL said it was working with Boeing to identify the issue with the engine.
The plane would remain parked at Honolulu until the issue had been resolved, it added.
