Production of two-aisle 787 hit by problems including gaps between carbon-composite skin panels
American says its newest 787 from a South Carolina Boeing factory may begin carrying passengers “in coming weeks”
Federal regulators said Monday they
are satisfied with changes Boeing (NYSE:
BA) has made in the production of its 787
Dreamliner passenger jet, clearing the way for the company to resume
deliveries.
American Airlines (NASDAQ: AAL) said it expects
to get its first new 787 in more than 15 months as early as Wednesday.
The Federal Aviation Administration
announcement confirmed reports late last month and came days after the agency's
acting chief met with safety inspectors who oversee Boeing.
Manufacturing problems
The FAA said acting Administrator
Billy Nolen wanted to hear about steps Boeing has taken to
fixmanufacturing problems and ensure independence for Boeing employees who
work with regulators.
Production of the big,
two-aisle 787 has been marred by several problems including gaps between
panels of the carbon-composite skin, and use of unapproved titanium parts from
a supplier in Italy. Those issues prevented Boeing from delivering any of the
planes for most of the last two years, and about 120 have been parked while
Boeing tried to fix the production process.
The FAA said it will inspect each
plane before it is approved for delivery.
Halt in deliveries
American Airlines was hit
particularly hard by the halt in deliveries. Earlier this year, it delayed some
planned international flights because Boeing wasn't able to deliver the planes
on schedule.
American said Monday that its
newest 787 will come from a
Boeingfactory in South Carolina and is expected to begin carrying passengers
"in the coming weeks." American said that will make 47 active 787s in
its fleet, with another 42 on order.
Shares of Boeing
Co., which is based in Arlington, Virginia, gained less than 1% on Monday
after being up nearly 4% earlier in the trading session.
Picture credit: AP
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