glenbrook
It is a frame, within which there is regulatory, economic, and engineering wiggle room.
The hope is that the current problem is related to the Manganese, the addition of which, though approved, may be the weak link, and Cobalt Oxide may be the default solution. The rules were published in April 2007, almost six years ago, so Boeing have some, [I]some[I] latitude. Abandoning LithIon would be a complete nightmare, but at this point, FAA has no room to be flexible, there is not a soul in the biz who wouldn't be ready to accuse the administration of special treatment. With such an open ended and potentially catastrophic issue of safety, Boeing has to decide how much to invest in the "new standard" (LithIon) for the industry. It would be off ledger, since it doesn't correlate to the original certificate.
HalloweenJack....
Yep, if FAA gets dug in, the certificate can be continued only with Ni batteries, or a bulletproof presentation of LithIon as the standard of safety. All "leniency" is over, done...If FAA get soft, and there is a problem, an accident, woe be tide....