Airbus ready with \'Plan B\' for lithium batteries in next jet

For the first time in more than 30 years, the United States has installed a new type of passenger plane, which makes people pay attention to the risk of lithium.
Due to the solvent involved, the Ion battery may overheat and ignite a fire that is more difficult to extinguish than most flames.
Airbus has studied alternatives to lithium.
The company\'s executives said the ion Battery of the next jet A350 had time to adapt to any rule changes caused by problems with Boeing\'s 787 Dreamliner.
Airbus plans to use lithium
The ion battery on the A350, similar to the technology on the Boeing 787, has supported modern power supplies so far.
\"We looked very closely at the integration of these batteries on the A350,\" Airbus Chief Executive Fabrice Bregier told a group of Air France reporters on Thursday.
\"I am very relaxed about this.
\"For the first time in more than 30 years, the United States has installed a new type of passenger aircraft, which makes people pay attention to the risk of lithium.
Due to the solvent involved, the Ion battery may overheat and ignite a fire that is more difficult to extinguish than most flames.
Airbus warns about the risks of lithium
According to a report reported earlier this week, ion batteries were at a private meeting of airlines in March 2011.
\"We discovered this vulnerability at the beginning of development, and we think we solved it about a year ago,\" Bregier said . \".
\"There\'s nothing that can stop us from going back to the classic plan that we \'ve been working on in parallel.
\"He did not provide details, but some aerospace industry sources warned that it could take months of engineering work and testing to redesign the battery to be certified.
\"We have a powerful design.
\"If this design has to develop, we have time to do so,\" Bregier said . \".
\"If, because the authorities come to the conclusion that technology is immature, it has to change in a more drastic way, then, before the first delivery in the second half of 2014, we have enough time to do so on the A350.
\"The head of the French company Saft\'s A350 battery production told Reuters earlier on Thursday that he did not believe that the aviation regulator would thoroughly rethink the use of lithium.
Ion due to the problem of 78 7.
This is the first time Boeing or Airbus has used this technology in the design of commercial aircraft. Lithium-
The ion battery is third lighter than the old nickel.
In contrast to cadmium, it is also possible to support other electrical systems that make aircraft lighter.
Compared to the nickel-cadmium batteries used on most jets, they take up less space.
Experts say the 787 is more dependent on the electrical system than the A350, rather than the traditional hydraulic system to control the brakes and other systems, so more power supply is neededup.
The head of the National Transportation Safety Board said after a press conference last week that there was no fire
Combat Systems in 78 7 battery boxes that also contain flight electronics are under inspection.
Airbus declined to say whether the A350 includes battery fire extinguishers, but industry insiders say the burning materials will be removed from the aircraft, and the Saft also offers electronics to reduce the risk of fire.
Saft declined to comment on the A350 battery design.
The Boeing 787 battery is supplied by Thales, a French defense electronics company.
Contract lithium-
Ion batteries from GS Yuasa, Japan
After a year of intense global publicity around the crack in the wings of the A380 superplane, Airbus is eager to avoid a public split with commercial competitors on security issues.
But after this month\'s public message to Boeing in support of the Boeing 787, Bregier has shown frustration with growing speculation about the impact of the incident on the a350.