A supplier to Boeing has told the embattled company that it has found incorrectly drilled holes in the fuselages of about 50 undelivered 737 MAX planes.
Boeing said Sunday that it needed to do additional work on the plane after its supplier, Spirit AeroSystems, found two incorrectly drilled holes in some of the fuselage.
Manufacturing problems can cause short-term delays in aircraft deliveries.
Industry sources told Reuters that “edge margins,” or spacing problems, had been found in holes drilled in window frames on some planes.
“Last Thursday, a supplier notified us of a nonconformity in approximately 737 fuselages,” Stand Deal, Boeing’s commercial chief, said in a letter to staff referring to Spirit AeroSystems.
“I would like to thank the employee at the supplier who informed his manager that two holes may not have been drilled exactly to our specifications,” Deal wrote.
Industry sources told Reuters that “edge margins,” or spacing problems, had been found in holes drilled in window frames on some planes. Reuters
“While this potential situation is not an immediate flight safety issue and all 737s can continue to operate safely, we believe we currently need to rework approximately 50 aircraft that have not yet been delivered,” he added.
Spirit AeroSystems representative Joe Buccino told Reuters that members of his quality control team found issues that did not meet the supplier’s engineering standards.
“We are in close contact with Boeing on this matter,” he told Reuters.
Boeing has come under fire from regulators and airlines since a door plug on Alaska Airlines’ 737 MAX 9 carrying 177 people lost its plug in the skies over Oregon during a flight to California on January 5, forcing the pilot to make an emergency landing.
The company said the misdrilled hole would not affect safety and that existing 737s could continue to fly.
Alaska Airlines Flight 1282 was forced to return to Portland International Airport after a fuselage panel exploded at 16,000 feet. via REUTERS
Deal said Boeing plans to devote several “factory days” this week at its factory outside Seattle to working on holes and completing additional work.
Such days allow workers to stop normal work and tackle specific tasks without shutting down production, according to Reuters, which said the Federal Aviation Administration had no immediate comment.
Last month, the agency said it planned to increase its oversight of Boeing and begin an immediate audit of the company’s production and manufacturing.
With Postal wire,
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Source: thtrangdai.edu.vn/en/
