| Recurring |
one_organization |
(a) The software failure incident related to the emergency locator beacons in the Boeing 787 occurred again at the same organization, Ethiopian Airlines. The incident at London's Heathrow Airport involved a fire event on the Ethiopian Airlines 787, which was the same aircraft that had been used to return the Dreamliner back to passenger service in April after being grounded for about three months by the FAA due to previous incidents involving the airplane's own lithium-cobalt batteries [20474].
(b) The software failure incident related to lithium-powered Emergency Locator Transmitter systems in aircraft has not been specifically mentioned to have occurred at multiple organizations in the provided article. Therefore, there is no information available about similar incidents happening at other organizations or with their products and services. |
| Phase (Design/Operation) |
unknown |
(a) The incident mentioned in the article does not relate to a software failure caused by design issues introduced during system development or updates. The focus of the incident is on the physical components of the emergency locator beacon and the potential thermal event related to the batteries used in the Boeing 787 [20474].
(b) The incident at Heathrow Airport involving the Boeing 787 and the emergency locator beacon was not attributed to software failure caused by operational factors or misuse of the system. The investigation primarily centered around the physical components, specifically the lithium-powered Emergency Locator Transmitter systems, and potential issues related to battery disruption leading to a fire event [20474]. |
| Boundary (Internal/External) |
within_system |
(a) within_system: The software failure incident related to the emergency locator beacons in the Boeing 787 at Heathrow Airport was primarily within the system. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) mentioned that there were indications of disruption to the battery cells of the Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) used in the 787, but it was not yet clear if the combustion was started by the batteries themselves or by an external source damaging the batteries afterwards [20474]. This indicates that the failure was related to components within the system (the ELT) rather than external factors. |
| Nature (Human/Non-human) |
non-human_actions, human_actions |
(a) The software failure incident in this case was not directly related to non-human actions but rather to a potential issue with the lithium-manganese dioxide battery cells in the emergency locator beacon (ELT) used in the Boeing 787. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) mentioned indications of disruption to the battery cells in the ELT, but it was not yet clear if the combustion in the 787 was started by the batteries themselves or by something like an external short damaging the batteries afterwards [20474].
(b) Human actions played a role in the software failure incident as well. The incident occurred when a ground crew agent turned off power to the airplane but left it plugged into the cord that provides power. This action led to a situation where the power was turned off, but the airplane remained connected to the power source. Roughly 10 hours later, smoke was noticed coming from the airplane, indicating a potential fire. Firefighters had to be called to the scene to address the situation [20474]. |
| Dimension (Hardware/Software) |
hardware |
(a) The software failure incident in the article is related to hardware. The incident involved a fire event at London's Heathrow Airport on a Boeing 787, where the emergency locator beacons, specifically the Lithium-powered Emergency Locator Transmitter systems, were recommended to be disabled due to indications of disruption to the battery cells in the ELT. The investigation was focused on determining whether the fire originated with the ELT or if it was started by some other source, such as an external short damaging the batteries afterwards. The incident caused significant heat damage to the upper part of the fuselage where the ELT was located [20474].
(b) There is no specific mention of a software failure incident originating from software-related contributing factors in the provided article. |
| Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) |
non-malicious |
The software failure incident discussed in the article is related to the emergency locator beacons (ELT) used in the Boeing 787 aircraft. The failure was not directly attributed to software issues but rather to a "fire event" at London's Heathrow Airport. The Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) recommended deactivating the ELT due to indications of disruption to the battery cells, although it was not yet clear if the combustion was started by the batteries themselves or by an external source damaging the batteries afterwards [20474]. This incident does not appear to be malicious in nature but rather a non-malicious failure related to potential issues with the ELT's battery cells. |
| Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) |
unknown |
The software failure incident reported in the article does not directly relate to poor or accidental decisions. Instead, it focuses on the failure of the emergency locator beacon in the Boeing 787 due to a "fire event" at London's Heathrow Airport, with investigations ongoing to determine the source of the fire [20474]. |
| Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) |
accidental |
(a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is not mentioned in the provided article [20474].
(b) The software failure incident was accidental in nature as it was related to a "fire event" at London's Heathrow Airport involving the emergency locator beacons in the Boeing 787. The incident involved a thermal event that led to significant heat damage to the upper part of the fuselage, indicating an accidental failure rather than a deliberate one [20474]. |
| Duration |
temporary |
The software failure incident described in the article is not related to a permanent or temporary software failure. Instead, the incident involves a "fire event" at London's Heathrow Airport related to the emergency locator beacons in the Boeing 787, specifically focusing on the lithium-powered Emergency Locator Transmitter systems and their potential role in the fire incident [20474]. |
| Behaviour |
other |
(a) crash: The software failure incident in the article is not related to a crash where the system loses state and does not perform any of its intended functions. The incident involved a fire event in a Boeing 787 at London's Heathrow Airport, which was not directly related to the system losing state [20474].
(b) omission: The software failure incident is not related to omission where the system omits to perform its intended functions at an instance(s). The focus of the incident was on a fire event and the recommendations to disable emergency locator beacons due to a thermal event, rather than the system omitting its functions [20474].
(c) timing: The software failure incident is not related to timing, where the system performs its intended functions correctly but too late or too early. The incident did not involve issues related to the timing of system functions [20474].
(d) value: The software failure incident is not related to a failure where the system performs its intended functions incorrectly. The incident primarily focused on a fire event and the recommendations related to emergency locator beacons, rather than the system performing functions incorrectly [20474].
(e) byzantine: The software failure incident is not related to a byzantine failure where the system behaves erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. The incident primarily involved a fire event in a Boeing 787 and recommendations related to emergency locator beacons, without indications of inconsistent system behavior [20474].
(f) other: The behavior of the software failure incident in the article can be categorized as a thermal event leading to a fire in a Boeing 787 at London's Heathrow Airport. The incident involved recommendations to disable emergency locator beacons due to indications of disruption to the battery cells in the emergency locator transmitter system. The focus was on addressing safety concerns related to the incident rather than a specific software behavior [20474]. |