Japan's All Nippon Airways Cancels Dreamliner Flights Until May-End

Japan's All Nippon Airways (ANA) has cancelled its 787 Dreamliner flights until 31 May, as the US and Japanese authorities and Boeing work hard to find a solution to the battery issues in the aircraft model.

During April and May, a period that includes Japan's Golden Week holiday, ANA will cancel more than 1,700 flights, taking the total flight cancellations to more than 3,600 since the entire 787 fleet were grounded.

The new cancellations include 1,250 domestic and 464 international flights, including those scheduled to Seoul, Seattle and Frankfurt.

"Unfortunately, it includes Golden Week, but we have decided to inform our customers in advance as the prospect for their resumption is still unseen," a company spokeswoman said.

ANA holds 17 Dreamliners out of the 50 in operation and is Boeing's biggest Dreamliner customer.

A total of 50 Dreamliners flown by seven airlines in six countries were grounded following a fire and an emergency landing of an ANA 787 in Japan on 7 January due to apparent battery problems. The lithium-ion batteries used in the aircraft are being examined by the US and Japanese aviation authorities.

On Friday, Boeing presented a long-term fix for the Dreamliner battery problems at a meeting with aviation authorities in the US. The plan involves the use of more insulation within the eight-cell battery, and ventilation that will channel any gases outside the aircraft. The aircraft could return to service by mid-April if the US authorities approve the fix soon.

However, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), which is reviewing the plan, noted that it will not allow the next generation aircraft to return to operation until it is confident that the solution has sufficiently addressed the battery failure risks.

Last week, Boeing's European arch-rival Airbus said it will avoid lithium-ion batteries in its new A350 aircraft under development and use heavier nickel-cadmium batteries instead.