Boeing to take up compensation claims after grounded planes return to service

Boeing Co would address compensation claims from customers of its 787 Dreamliner jets once the grounded aircraft returned to service, according to the company's vice-president for sales for Asia Pacific and India.

The focus was to get the airplane back, then the company would deal with that issue (of compensation) like it had dealt with all these deliveries that were happening, Reuters quoted Dinesh Keskar as saying on the sidelines of the ongoing air show in Bangalore.

He said the company would deal with that in closed rooms and with customers.

The company's 50 Dreamliners in service have been grounded since mid-January after two incidents involving battery problems and a US investigation into the issues was "weeks away" from completion, its head said this week.

India's national carrier Air India, which had bought six Dreamliners and ordered 21 more, may seek compensation from the company for the jet's glitches, according to the aviation minister.

According to the Dreamliner's launch customer All Nippon Airways Co Ltd, which has the biggest fleet of the 250-seat planes, it would seek compensation from Boeing once the amount of damages was clearer. Japan Airlines Co Ltd also said it would talk to Boeing about compensation, as it predicted this week that the 787's grounding would cost it nearly $8 million in lost earnings through March.