Boeing 787-8 incident near London, Gb, October 10, 2014
On October 10, 2014 at about 1:00 pm local time, a 2012 Boeing 787-8, registered N26906, suffered minor damage in an incident during initial climb near London (Heathrow International Airport). It was flown under scheduled airline rules (Part 121). The NTSB record does not give the injuries. The weather was conditions the NTSB did not record.
The NTSB's probable cause their words, unchanged
A shutdown of the displays due to the inability to operate through a rapid transient radiated electric field brought on by a near field lightning strike. Contributing to the loss of displays for the remainder of the flight was the lack of guidance to the crew to perform a controlled power reset to the display.
Source: NTSB aviation accident database, copy made October 5, 2026. Docket and reports at the NTSB.
What the record shows
- Date
- October 10, 2014 · about 1:00 pm local time
- Place
- London, United Kingdom · Heathrow International Airport · map
- Type
- Incident
- Injuries
- The NTSB record does not give the injuries.
- Weather
- conditions the NTSB did not record
- Aircraft
- Boeing 787-8 NO SERIES, built 2012 · all 787-8s on the register
- Registration
- N26906 · registry record · serial 34829
- Damage
- Minor damage
- Flight
- Flight · scheduled airline rules (Part 121)
The NTSB's narrative final · quoted from the NTSB record
Based on crew reports and verified with images from the crew and the EAFR, the flight crew lost the use of three of the five head down displays following a lightning strike. The crew followed published procedures, however the procedures did not contain a checklist related to a partial loss of displays. After the crew elected to follow the "Loss of All Displays Checklist", none of the affected displays recovered to an operational state. The crew did land the aircraft successfully using the remaining displays available to the crew. All of the displays did recover normal operation after accomplishing a power cycle to the displays while the aircraft was on the ground. No procedures existed for a power reset of the displays to occur while in flight, which most likely would have resulted in a restoration of the displays. Reviewing the design and display certification requirements, the displays passed their respective certification testing required by the FAA. Supplemental testing by the investigation also showed the displays operating satisfactorily at testing levels that were above levels specified in the original certification of the aircraft and system. However, when subjecting the displays to testing that was based on different standardized system level testing (typically associated with military aircraft) that was not required to be conducted for display unit or aircraft certification, the failure could be repeated. This failure was attributed to the display's response to a rapid transient radiated electric field. The electrical field analysis of the aircraft cockpit confirmed that similar electrical transients can be present during certain lightning strikes experienced by an aircraft. Although the displays passed the required certification testing required by the FAA, it was determined that certain environmental conditions exist that could cause adverse conditions of the display operation resulting in a loss of the display.
The complete narrative as the NTSB published it. The NTSB's docket holds the report as a PDF and any photographs, statements and other documents from the investigation.
The factual record from the NTSB's investigation tables, in plain English
What happened, in order
- Other weather encounter during initial climb
- Flight instrument malf/fail during initial climb defining event
The NTSB's findings
- cause Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Indicating/recording systems › Central display › Failure
- Aircraft › Aircraft systems › Indicating/recording systems › Central display › Capability exceeded
The aircraft
- Airframe total time: 6,582 hours
- Last inspection: continuous airworthiness programme, October 8, 2014
- Landing gear: retractable
- Operator: United Airlines INC
The flight
- Departed from: EGLL London at 2:57 pm
- Destination: IAH Houston TX
- Flight plan: IFR
- A second pilot was aboard
Weather at the time
- Light: daylight
- Wind: from 220° at 12 knots
- Sky: a few clouds at 3,000 ft
- Temperature: 0°F (-18°C), dew point 0°F (-18°C)
Documents from the investigation the NTSB's docket: the evidence folder behind the report
The docket, the folder of records gathered during an investigation (maintenance records, photographs, witness statements, examinations), has not been read from the NTSB for this case yet; the list appears here once it has. Open the docket at the NTSB.
Everything on this page comes from the NTSB's public records. The narrative, probable cause and findings are the NTSB's own words; the coded tables behind the report are written out in plain English, with pilots' ages, home towns and medical details left out. The documents and photographs are the NTSB's docket, shown as the NTSB released them. This site's own text never names anyone involved. A preliminary report can change; the final report usually follows one to two years later, and the page is refreshed when it does.