Items like batteries and chargers would have to be TSO compliant before being approved by The FAA for inclusion in The 787
This very point is rather timely given a major blunder by CASA in recent days. Even they need teaching a good hard dose of reality.....
What about TSO’s?
Another question to be answered is what, if any, of the equipment needs to be “TSO’ed”. In order to address this question, it’s
helpful to understand what a “TSO” is. TSO stands for Technical Standard Order, which is defined in 14 CFR Part 21, section
21.601(b)(1) as “….a minimum performance standard for specified articles (for the purpose of this subpart, articles means
materials, parts, processes, or appliances) used on civil aircraft.” As you can see from this definition, a TSO is actually a
performance standard to which an article can be manufactured.
When someone says an article is “TSO’ed”, what they really mean is that the unit was manufactured under a TSO
authorization. Section 21.601(b)(2) says, “A TSO authorization is an FAA design and production approval issued to the
manufacturer of an article which has been found to meet a specific TSO”. You’ll note that the TSO and TSO authorization deal
specifically with design and manufacture, and have nothing to do with installation or operation.
So don't hang your hopes blindly on that.
