File photo: Japan Airlines' (JAL) Boeing 787 Dreamliner
Japan Airlines has grounded another one of its Dreamliner jets after "white smoke" was seen outside the cockpit window during maintenance, a year after the aircraft suffered a months-long global grounding over battery problems.
The carrier said that a technician at Tokyo's Narita airport, who was working on the parked plane before its departure to Bangkok Tuesday afternoon, first noticed what appeared to be smoke outside the cockpit window and then a battery system warning.
An investigation found that one of the eight lithium-ion cells in the plane's battery system had leaked, but its safety valve, which is designed to release excessive pressure, was properly open.
"The temperature of the cell was high. We believe it caused 'white smoke', which could be smoke or vapour," a JAL spokesman said.
The airline said it replaced the grounded plane with another Dreamliner, which left as scheduled, carrying 169 passengers and crew.
"We are making sure of the safety of every plane before its departure. We will continue regular flights (with Dreamliners)," said a separate JAL spokesman, Norihisa Hanyu.
In response to the incident on Tuesday, US-based Boeing said the "improvements made to the 787 battery system last year appear to have worked as designed".
Boeing admitted in April that despite months of testing it did not know the root cause of the battery problems, but rolled out modifications it said would ensure the issue did not recur.
The measures comprised redesigning the battery and charger system and adding a steel box to prevent burning.
Since then, Dreamliners have experienced a series of minor glitches, including a fault with an air pressure sensor and the brake system.
In October, unflushable toilets caused JAL pilots to turn their plane around just after it left Moscow bound for Tokyo.
JAL's domestic rival All Nippon Airways (ANA) also said Wednesday it would continue flying the plane -- the pair are the aircraft's two biggest customers and have invested heavily in its success.
The incident was the latest for the Dreamliner since the trouble-plagued aircraft returned to service in the middle of last year following a months-long worldwide grounding.