LONDON – Qatar Airways Ltd. said a 787 jet received from The Boeing Co. this week has been grounded with a faulty generator, a problem similar to one that forced the emergency landing of a Dreamliner operated by United Continental Holdings.
Qatar Air’s third 787 exhibited the failure on its delivery flight from the United States, Akbar Al Baker, the Gulf carrier’s chief executive officer, said Thursday at London’s Heathrow airport.
The plane has been grounded since Sunday and may remain so for at least four days while Boeing sends spares and a recovery team.
“These problems are unacceptable because this aircraft has been flying for the last 14 months,” Al Baker said in an interview, referring to the Dreamliner, which entered commercial service late last year. “They have to get their act together very fast because we at Qatar Airways will not accept any more defects.”
A United 787 was forced to land on Dec. 4 following the failure of one of six generators. The 787, the world’s first composite-plastic airliner, saves on fuel with a Hamilton Sundstrand system that doesn’t divert air from the engines for power, instead using five times as much electricity as older jets.
“Two aircraft having the same problem — the same major problem — so quickly is a cause of concern,” Al Baker said, adding that Doha-based Qatar Air will ask Boeing to cover its losses. “Definitely we will demand compensation. We are not buying airplanes from them to put in a museum.”
Boeing said its technical team is working with Qatar Air to determine the cause of the generator failure and take appropriate steps.
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