Free Republic

Airbus said it is dropping plans to use lithium-ion batteries on its new A350 airplane, under development, in the wake of problems with the batteries on Chicago-based Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner. The Boeing Co. rival said, while it believes the battery architecture it has been developing and qualifying for is robust and safe, it will instead use nickel cadmium main batteries, which have a proven track record. “Airbus considers this to be the most appropriate way forward in the interest of program execution and A350 reliability, Airbus said in a statement. The entire fleet of 50 Boeing 787s was grounded by...