Boeing Says Less Than Half Of 787 Jets In Stock To Be Delivered In 2021 Due To New Problem

Aircraft manufacturer Boeing said on Tuesday that it has discovered a new issue with its 787 Dreamliner wide-body aircraft that will require fixes resulting in less than half of the airplanes in stock being delivered this year

WASHINGTON (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 13th July, 2021) Aircraft manufacturer Boeing said on Tuesday that it has discovered a new issue with its 787 Dreamliner wide-body aircraft that will require fixes resulting in less than half of the airplanes in stock being delivered this year.

"The company has been engaged in detailed discussions with the FAA [Federal Aviation Administration] on verification methodology for 787 fuselages, and conducting associated inspections and rework," Boeing said in a statement. "As that work is performed, the 787 production rate will temporarily be lower than five per month and will gradually return to that rate. Boeing now expects to deliver fewer than half of the 787s currently in inventory this year."

In May, US Congress sought records from Boeing and the Federal Aviation Administration about production problems on the 787 and the 737 MAX airplanes.

The 737 MAX jets were grounded worldwide and deliveries were halted after two deadly crashes.

They resumed flying late last year after Boeing made changes to a flight-control system that played a role in the accidents.

Boeing's two-aisle 787 jet is popular for longer route travel. However, deliveries of the aircraft were halted first in 2020 and again in May to fix production problems affecting how pieces of the carbon-fiber fuselage are joined as well as how the planes are inspected.

The new problem with the 787 jet was found on a part called the forward pressure bulkhead - a dome-shaped structure in the nose that keeps the interior of the airplane pressurized.

"Based on our assessment of the time required to complete this work, Boeing is re-prioritizing production resources for a few weeks to support the inspection and rework," Boeing said.

The company noted that it had delivered 14 units of the 787 jet this year of which 12 in the second quarter alone.