Boeing encouraged by meeting with FAA on 787 grounding

Boeing Co said its top commercial airplane official held a productive meeting on Friday with the head of the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration, and it was encouraged by progress being made toward returning the fleet of 50 787s to flight.

Boeing released a statement after the meeting between Ray Conner, president of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, and FAA Administrator Michael Huerta, but gave no details about its proposal to avert the battery issues that grounded the world's newest airliner, the 787 Dreamliner.

"We are encouraged by the progress being made toward resolving the issue and returning the 787 to flight for our customers and their passengers around the world," said Boeing spokesman Marc Birtel. "We are committed to taking every necessary step to assure our customers and the traveling public of the integrity of the 787, and won't hesitate in our efforts to continually improve the safety and reliability of our products."

(Reporting By Andrea Shalal-Esa; Editing by Gary Hill)