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Boeing's reputation could be up in the air whilst all 50 of its Dreamliner planes remain on the ground. 

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U.S. regulators have taken them out of action across the world after a series of safety scares. 

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An investigation is underway into problems with the advanced aircraft's battery, a problem that forced an emergency landing in Japan on Wednesday.

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Airlines there have the bulk of 787s in service, 

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but the grounding order also covers commercial air carriers in India, Africa, North and South America as well as Europe and the Middle East.

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Now, the Dreamliner is packed with sophisticated technology, and as Jim Boulden reports, these high-tech milestones come with their own challenges.

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They are the symbols of modern engineering. 

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The Airbus A380 and Boeing's 787 Dreamliner are milestones in aviation history -- 

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not design evolution, but design revolutions -- making them the most fuel-efficient airliners in the sky.

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This, of course, came at a price, both over budget, both three years overdue. 

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And in just the same way, these rival airframe manufacturers have mirrored each other. 

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Airbus and Boeing are now playing leapfrog with delays and setbacks since entry into service.

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First, there were problems with the Airbus A380. A midair engine explosion last year; the plane landed safely. And then cracks in the wing components.

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It was not a walk in the park, but we did it. 

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We have developed the solutions. We have tested the solutions in flight. And we can say that this A380 wing refit issue is now behind us.

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And now it's Boeing which is firmly under the spotlight with its flagship Dreamliner aircraft.

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There is a chance, a relatively remote chance, that there's something more systematically flawed with the Boeing electrical system. 

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Now that in its... that would be a much more complex and much more expensive issue to resolve, and certainly would lead to serious delays in the program.

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It was two airlines in Japan that took the first step to cease operations. 

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With aviation authorities echoing their safety concerns for the lithium-ion batteries, grounding the entire Dreamliner fleet to [of] 50. 

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And these are the same type of batteries that Airbus will use in the A350 XWB.

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Regarding the 350 electrical architecture, we don't see any reason -- at least till we get additional information -- to change our design.

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Teething problems are part and parcel of groundbreaking technology where the warning signs come early so that manufacturers can tweak after a bit of wear and tear.

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The 787 and the technology that it embodies is the next generation.  

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Airbus will already be incorporating some of that technology into its new aircraft, 

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and you can be assured that the next generation of airplanes in the 2020s will have the technology that's been pioneered by the 787.

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No airline has said it's looking to cancel any of the more than 800 Dreamliners on order. 

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But whether a minor fix or a major refit is needed, 

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even without these incidents, these next generation of aircraft will take years for the manufacturers to turn a profit, if ever.