Boeing's Conner says 787 fix can be done quickly once approved

Boeing Commercial Aircraft Chief Executive Ray Conner./ Bloomberg

(Reuters) — Boeing Commercial Aircraft Chief Executive Ray Conner said the company is very confident about its proposed fix for batteries that melted down on two 787 Dreamliners in January, and the process of getting the fix installed and the plane flying again can move quickly once the solution is approved by regulators.

Mr. Conner said parent Boeing Co. saw no reason to adjust its forecast for the number of 787 jets delivered this year. He spoke at an investor conference hosted by JPMorgan Chase & Co. in New York.

The 787 was grounded worldwide in January after batteries burned on jets owned by All Nippon Airways Co. Ltd. and Japan Airlines Co. Ltd. Boeing proposed a fix to the system on Feb. 22.

In response to a question by analyst Joe Nadol, Mr. Conner said "no question" that most of the mistakes with 787 were made early on in the program.