Boeing gets big Dreamliner order

In a sign that airlines might be gaining confidence in Boeing's troubled 787 Dreamliner jet, International Airlines Group -- which owns British Airways and Spanish carrier Iberia -- reached an agreement to purchase 18 of the 787s, Reuters reports.

The order comes on top of a previous order for 24 Dreamliners.

But ever since battery failures caused the plane to be grounded around the world early this year, orders have been unsurprisingly slow. The only other order this year was for 42 of the 787s from American Airlines around the time word was getting out of the Dreamliner issues and before the plane was grounded.

Boeing said today that it delivered 137 commercial planes in the first quarter, only one of which was a Dreamliner.

However, a fix for the 787's battery problem seems to be coming along. USA Today reports that testing is more than half done on the proposed battery fix and that a demonstration flight will take place in the "coming days."

British Airways parent IAG, Boeing reach deal on 18 Dreamliners [Reuters]

Photo: Boeing

Catch up on the Dreamliner battery saga:

• Boeing: Dreamliners could be in the air ‘within weeks’
• FAA approves flight test for new Boeing Dreamliner battery plan
• Boeing proposes emergency fix to get Dreamliners back in the air
• Despite Dreamliner woes, Pentagon stands behind battery use in fighter jets
• Boeing hopes battery redesign will get Dreamliners back in the air

This post was originally published on Smartplanet.com