US federal aviation authorities areinvestigating an engine failure on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner plane built for AirIndia during a pre-delivery taxi test in Charleston, South Carolina.
The National Transportation Safety Board said Wednesday Boeing and GeneralElectric, the engine manufacturer, had notified it Saturday about the mishap.As a result of the failure, the engine reportedly left debris on the activerunway at Charleston International Airport and caused a brush fire, NTSB said.There were no passengers aboard the aircraft nor were there any fatalities orinjuries.
The NTSB said it had sent an aviation investigator with extensive expertise inaircraft power plants, to the scene on Sunday to gather information to betterunderstand the circumstances of the event.
In the next few days, an NTSB aircraft powerplants expert and a metallurgistfrom the NTSB Materials Lab will travel to a General Electric facility inCincinnati, Ohio, to lead and coordinate the disassembly and examination of theengine in question, it said
The Federal Aviation Administration, Boeing and General Electric are parties tothe investigation, NTSB said.
Boeing is "unaware of any operational issue that would present concernsabout the continued safe operation of in-service 787s powered by GE engines,"a statement from the Chicago-based planemaker said.
Boeing's factory in North Charleston, South Carolina, is one of two assemblysites for the twin-engine 787, the world's first jetliner with a fuselage andwings built chiefly from composite materials. The other assembly site isBoeing's wide-body plant in Everett, Washington.