Fuel switch locks safe: Boeing, US aviation organisation

WASHINGTON/NEW DELHI/MONTREAL: US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Boeing have privately issued notifications that fuel switch locks on Boeing planes are safe, a document seen by Reuters showed and four sources with knowledge of the matter said.FAA's continued airworthiness notification on July 11 came after a preliminary report Friday into last month's Boeing 787-8 crash, which killed 260 people, raised questions over engine fuel cutoff switches. The notification to civil aviation authorities said: "Although the fuel control switch design, including locking feature, is similar on various Boeing aeroplane models, the FAA does not consider this issue to be an unsafe condition that would warrant an airworthiness directive on any Boeing airplane models.

"When approached, the US FAA did not have anything to add beyond the notification. Boeing also referred to FAA's notification, which said the planemaker is not recommending any action, sources said. REUTERS