Business

US approves Boeing inspection, reworks plan to resume 787 deliveries


An American Airlines Boeing 787-9 Dreamliner prepares to land at Miami International Airport on December 10, 2021 in Miami, Florida.

Joe Raedle | beautiful pictures

The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) on Friday approved Boeing’s inspection and revised plans to resume deliveries of 787 Dreamliners, two people briefed on the matter told Reuters.

The FAA approved Boeing’s proposal to require specific inspections to verify the plane’s condition meets the requirements and that all work has been completed, a move that will allow Boeing to resume deliveries in August. after they halted in May 2021, sources said.

On July 17, Boeing told reporters it was “very close” to restarting 787 deliveries.

The FAA referred questions about the approval to Boeing. “We do not comment on ongoing certifications,” the agency said.

Boeing did not confirm the approval Friday but said it “will continue to work transparently with the FAA and our customers to continue delivering the 787.”

Boeing has faced production problems with the 787 for more than two years. In September 2020, the FAA said it was “investigating manufacturing defects” on some 787 jets.

After two deadly 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019, the FAA pledged to take a closer look at Boeing and give Boeing less responsibility for aircraft certification.

Boeing suspended deliveries of the 787 after the FAA raised concerns about its proposed testing method. The FAA previously issued two aviation reliability directives to address production issues with aircraft in service and identified a new issue in July 2021.

Boeing’s chief financial officer Brian West said this week during an investor call that the airline had 120 787s in stock and was “working on completing the necessary work to prepare them for delivery.” Boeing is “producing at a very low rate and we will continue to do so until deliveries resume, gradually returning to 5 aircraft per month over time.”

The plane maker only resumed deliveries in March 2021 after a five-month hiatus before halting them again. Friday’s approval came after lengthy discussions with the FAA.

The regulator said it wanted Boeing to ensure that it “has a robust plan for the recycling work it has to do on the large number of new 787s in storage” and that its “delivery process” Boeing is stabilizing.”

In February, the FAA said it would retain the authority to issue airworthiness certifications until it was confident that “Boeing’s manufacturing and quality control processes have consistently produced 787s that meet these standards.” FAA design standards.”

Steve Dickson, the agency’s manager at the time, told Reuters in February that the FAA needed from Boeing “a systematic fix to their manufacturing processes.”

An airplane built for American Airlines will likely be the first 787 aircraft delivered by Boeing since May 2021, the sources said. That could come as soon as next month. Last week American Airlines said in an earnings press conference it expected to receive nine 787s this year, including two by early August.

In January, Boeing disclosed charges of $3.5 billion for delayed 787 deliveries and customer concessions, and $1 billion in other unusual manufacturing costs stemming from manufacturing defects and repairs. related test.



Source link

news7f

News7F: Update the world's latest breaking news online of the day, breaking news, politics, society today, international mainstream news .Updated news 24/7: Entertainment, Sports...at the World everyday world. Hot news, images, video clips that are updated quickly and reliably

Related Articles

Back to top button