787 Dreamliner World Wide Grounded

IMGP4520-Boeing 787 Dreamliner testplane LB2011Aviation authorities around the world have ordered airlines to stop flying their Boeing 787s, after a battery fault on one of the aircraft in Japan.

Qatar Airways joined airlines in Chile and India in temporarily halting 787 flights, following a directive to ground planes from US authorities.

European regulators have also called for the planes to be grounded.

Japan’s two leading airlines already grounded their fleets of Boeing 787s on Wednesday after one of the Dreamliner passenger jets made an emergency landing, the latest in a series of incidents that have heightened safety concerns over a plane many see as the future of commercial aviation.

All Nippon Airways Co said instruments aboard a domestic flight indicated a battery error, triggering emergency warnings. The incident was described by a transport ministry official as “highly serious” – language used in international safety circles as indicating there could have been an accident.

Boeing shares fell 2 percent in after-hours trading to $72.80 after the FAA announcement.