Mark Huber is an aviation industry veteran who has worked in the flight training, aircraft sales, aircraft component, and airport development businesses. He has flight time in more than 50 different and diverse aircraft, including helicopters, aerobatic aircraft, vintage warbirds, jet fighters, business jets and turboprops, and transport-category aircraft. He has jumped out of several of these—on purpose—with a parachute. His defense and aviation journalism has been published in a variety of national and international periodicals.

Contributor

Mark Huber

An American Airlines Boeing 787-9 made an emergency landing on Friday after experiencing what is&nbsp;being reported as a significant electrical problem over the North Atlantic. Flight 87, operating from London Heathrow (LHR) to Chicago O’Hare (KORD), successfully diverted to Keflavik, Iceland (KEF).&nbsp;

 


According to data from FlightAware, three hours and 37 minutes into the flight, the aircraft descended from 31,000 to 10,000 feet in 14 minutes before making the&nbsp;emergency landing at Keflavik 30 minutes later. A passenger aboard the aircraft reported to AIN that seat electronics in the passenger cabin&nbsp;(including Wi-Fi)&nbsp;failed,&nbsp;the turn back to Iceland was steep, and&nbsp;the landing gear “went down very early.” He also reported that the captain told passengers that backup navigation and the cockpit public address system had failed. On landing, several fire trucks and ambulances met the aircraft before it made&nbsp;a normal taxi to the terminal. A pair of technicians from United Airlines then boarded the airplane&nbsp;before passengers were informed that the flight would not be continuing on the incident aircraft.&nbsp;

 


AIN contacted American, Boeing, and the FAA for additional information about the incident. Boeing had no official response. American did not respond to repeated requests for comment. A spokesman for the FAA said the agency was looking into the matter.&nbsp;

 


Since its entry into service, the 787 has suffered from various problems related to its lithium-ion batteries and electrical and computer systems. In 2020, the FAA issued an&nbsp;<a href="https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2020/03/23/2020-06092/airworthiness-directives-the-boeing-company-airplanes">airworthiness directive</a>&nbsp;that required repetitive recycling of the airplane's electrical power to prevent the failure of stale data monitoring in the common core system that can&nbsp;“lead to undetected or unannunciated loss of common data network (CDN) message age validation, combined with a CDN switch failure.”

 


Boeing has touted the mostly composite-construction 787 as a “more electric” airplane. Its electrical system differs significantly from those in previous-generation aircraft in that it has two generators,&nbsp;instead of one, on each engine and the auxiliary power unit; power feeders run from generators to the aft electrical equipment bay as opposed to the front electrical equipment bay; and&nbsp;17 small substations handle the power to local loads.&nbsp;

News and information on safety procedures and concerns.

Electrical Problem Prompts 787 Emergency Landing

American Flight 87 diverted to Iceland after electrical and navigation failure.

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Amy Wilder

News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, maintenance, operations, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security, and training.

Altitude and course deviation, traffic proximity remain top categories

ACSF Data Shows Stable Bizav Risk Amid 2026 Pressures

Kerry Lynch

News and issues relating to international air transport and cargo carriers, national airlines and regional airlines, including aircraft, engines, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security and training.

Essential news and analysis on the defense aerospace business. Your trusted source for new and ongoing programs and requirements in military aircraft (manned and unmanned), engines, avionics, weapons and associated systems, including ground-based air defense.

Aircraft remained within separation guidance but neared each other after the presidential helicopter was unable to alert ATC

Faulty Comms Preceded Marine One/Envoy Close Call

Graham leaving agency within months of confirmation to another term

NTSB Vice Chair Michael Graham To Retire October 2

Stuart “Kipp” Lau

News about bills, laws, regulations and other governmental decisions affecting aviation and aerospace. Topics include FAA re-authorizations, taxes on fuel and aviation activities, environmental legislation, ICAO decisions, governmental mediation of labor conflicts and World Trade Organization disputes and decisions.

UK CAA concerned over rise in unstable approaches continuing to land

AINsight: Go-arounds Are a Normal and Expected Outcome

News about significant aircraft accidents and information from accident reports.

News and issues regarding all manner of civil and military rotorcraft and their powerplants, including helicopters, tilt rotors and unmanned air vehicles.

Helicopters more than twice as vulnerable to loss of visual reference accidents than airplanes

TSB: Rotorcraft More Prone To Loss-of-visual-reference Accidents

Charlotte Bailey

News about environmental issues relating to aircraft operations, including noise issues, emissisions, and regulations. See Fuel for biofuel.

News and issues relating to the aerospace industry that are related to the science, engineering and business of flight in space involving civil, industrial and military applications, and similar topics related to flight in the atmosphere of the Earth that are not covered more directly by other AINonline subject channels. In other words, both astronautical and aeronautical subjects, except for those aeronautical topics that are specifically covered elsewhere on this website.

More In Safety

ACSF Data Shows Stable Bizav Risk Amid 2026 Pressures

Altitude and course deviation, traffic proximity remain top categories

Faulty Comms Preceded Marine One/Envoy Close Call

Aircraft remained within separation guidance but neared each other after the presidential helicopter was unable to alert ATC

NTSB Vice Chair Michael Graham To Retire October 2

Graham leaving agency within months of confirmation to another term

AINsight: Go-arounds Are a Normal and Expected Outcome

UK CAA concerned over rise in unstable approaches continuing to land

TSB: Rotorcraft More Prone To Loss-of-visual-reference Accidents

Helicopters more than twice as vulnerable to loss of visual reference accidents than airplanes

EASA: Atmospheric Icing Insufficiently Understood

European air safety agency calls for more comprehensive studies into phenomenon

Embry-Riddle Introduces ‘Safer Skies’ Video Podcasts

First episode features three-time space shuttle veteranJanet Kavandi

Li-ion Thermal Runaways on the Rise in Aircraft Cabins

Numbers are rising and the risk of a serious incident is increasing

AIN Products

SUBSCRIPTIONS

RESOURCES

ABOUT AIN