WASHINGTON: Boeing Co has temporarily halted deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner jets as the US plane maker conducts additional analysis on a fuselage component, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Thursday.
Deliveries will not resume until the FAA is satisfied that the issue has been addressed, the agency said.
“The FAA is working with Boeing to determine any actions that might be required for recently delivered airplanes,” the agency said.
Boeing said in reviewing certification records it “discovered an analysis error by our supplier related to the 787 forward pressure bulkhead. We notified the FAA and have paused 787 deliveries while we complete the required analysis and documentation.”
Spirit AeroSystems, which supplies the forward pressure bulkhead for the 787 jets, said it was aware that Boeing has halted deliveries.
“Based on the information we currently have and our interactions with Boeing to date, we believe it is too early to assert there was an ‘analysis error’ by Spirit,” the company said in a statement.
Boeing said it discovered the error within the past week.
“There is no immediate safety or flight concern for the in-service fleet,” Boeing said. “While near-term deliveries will be impacted, at this time we do not anticipate a change to our production and delivery outlook for the year.”
The Wall Street Journal earlier reported that Boeing has not handed over a Dreamliner since Jan 26 from the production line or from the dozens stored awaiting delivery because of a documentation issue.
