Boeing

Boeing is holding up deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner because of yet another manufacturing problem. It's the latest in a string of setbacks affecting the 787 and another Boeing plane, the 737 Max. Boeing said Tuesday that it is inspecting fittings on part of the tail of 787s called the horizontal stabilizer for "a nonconforming condition." The company says the inspections and repair work will affect near-term deliveries but won't change the company's forecast of deliveries for the full year.

Boeing's latest setback with production issues means airlines will have fewer planes than they expected to handle big crowds of travelers this summer. The company's CEO said Tuesday an issue with fuselage fittings will prevent the company from delivering dozens of 737 Max jetliners to airlines in time for the summer season. But CEO David Calhoun says the issue won't affect Boeing's plans to increase the production rate for the 737 Max, its best-selling plane. Boeing disclosed last week that subcontractor used what Boeing called a non-standard manufacturing process on fittings where the tail is attached to the fuselage of most models of Max jets built since 2019.

Boeing is trying to ramp up production of its 737 Max to take advantage of a backlog in orders for the jet. A Boeing executive said Monday that the company will add an assembly line at an existing plant in Everett, Washington. Boeing has room in the plant because it will no longer build 747s and 787s there. This will be the fourth assembly line for the 737 Max. That's the plane that was grounded worldwide for nearly two years after two deadly crashes. Since U.S. and other regulators cleared the Max to resume flying, Boeing has landed large orders from United, Delta, Southwest and foreign airlines.

Boeing has pleaded not guilty to a criminal charge in a case revolving around two crashes of Boeing 737 Max planes. A federal judge in Texas took Boeing's plea Thursday. The judge is considering whether to appoint a special monitor to examine safety issues at the company. It's an unusual case because Boeing thought it had settled the issue when it reached a deal with federal prosecutors two years ago. But relatives of some of the passengers who died are challenging the settlement because they weren't informed about secret negotiations between Boeing and the Justice Department.

Federal safety officials have confirmed they will let Boeing resume deliveries of the 787 Dreamliner jet. The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it expects Boeing to start shipping out the long-shelved planes in the coming days. American Airlines expects to get one of the new planes as early as Wednesday. Production has been marred by several problems including gaps between panels of the 787's carbon-composite skin. That's prevented Boeing from delivering any of the planes for most of the last two years, and about 120 of them have been parked while Boeing tried to fix the production process. Once shipments resume, Boeing will regain a critical source of cash.

The Boeing Co. has told employees they must be vaccinated against COVID-19 or possibly be fired. The Seattle Times reports the deadline for workers at the aerospace giant is Dec. 8. Employees can request exemptions "due to a disability or sincerely held religious belief." The policy will apply to roughly 125,000 US-based employees company-wide. On Monday, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued an executive order barring private companies or any other entity from requiring vaccines. Boeing has more than 5,000 employees in Texas. It has about 32,000 more at facilities in Alabama, Arizona, Missouri, Oklahoma and South Carolina.

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