Boeing says beacons can be removed from 787s in an hour

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Emergency beacons made by Honeywell International Inc can be simply removed from the Boeing 787 in about an hour, Boeing Co said Thursday, after UK authorities investigating a 787 fire in London, recommended de-activating the devices.

"The emergency locator transmitter (ELT) can be simply removed and the task takes on the order of one hour to perform," said Boeing spokesman Marc Birtel.

He said the device's main purpose is to alert and guide rescue crews to the location of an airplane in the event of an accident, but the equipment was not required as part of the airplane design.

"It is not a U.S. Federal Aviation Regulation requirement, but it is required by some foreign regulators for their airlines or their airspace," Birtel said.

(Reporting by Andrea Shalal-Esa; Editing by Gerald E. McCormick)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/boeing-says-beacons-removed-787s-hour-155657838.html

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