As reported in many media (including FlyerTalk), the FAA has issued an Airworthiness Directive (AD note) restricting Boeing 787 Dreamliner equipped with the Rolls Royce Trent 1000 engines to ETOPS (Extended-range Twin-engine Operational Performance Standards) 140 due to engine reliability problems.
This means RR-equipped Dreamliner can not be over 140 minutes / 2:20 hours from potential diversion airports at any time flying overwater sectors (to protect the aircraft if restricted to flying on a single engine due to engine failure). AA chose the
GEnx 1B engines for its Dreamliner; GE engines are not affected by the FAA AD note. GEnx powered 787s were awarded ETOPS 330 (5:30 hours) certification (properly equipped and maintained); that range covers approximately 97% of the Earth’s surface.
You can see ETOPS and effects on routes by using Great Circle Mapper
here and entering the closes ETOPS limits, 138 or 330.
AA planned operations with the 787-8 and 787-9 aircraft have not been affected by the FAA AD note.
FT TalkMail: According to ch-aviation, the most recent restrictions will affect nearly a dozen carriers including British Airways, Virgin Atlantic, Norwegian, LATAM, Thai Airways, Avianca, Air New Zealand, Air Europa, LOT, Ethiopian, Royal Brunei and Scoot. In August of 2016, All Nippon Airways announced it would replace the Rolls Royce engines on all 50 of the Dreamliners in its fleet citing “multiple engine problems” eerily similar to those described in the latest AD.
(AA partners in bold.)
The sample ETOPS routing and information is Frim Grest Circle Mapper.