A quality engineer from Boeing publicly reported that the company had taken some "shortcuts" to solve the production bottleneck of the 787 Dreamliner, and these so-called "shortcuts" could ultimately damage the structural integrity of over 1000 in-service wide body aircraft.
Sam Salehpur, a former employee at Boeing, publicly stated on Tuesday (April 9) that there were some gaps in the connection of various parts of the Boeing 787 aircraft fuselage, which Boeing did not measure correctly and then mistakenly filled in these gaps. Katz Banks Kumin, a law firm commissioned by Salehpur, also pointed out in a letter that over time, this issue may lead to "severe fatigue" in aircraft performance.
Salehpur has been researching the 787 aircraft from 2020 to early 2022. On Tuesday, he told reporters that the problem he described "could significantly shorten the lifespan of the aircraft.".
These accusations have intensified regulatory scrutiny of Boeing's manufacturing and quality practices. Since the incident on January 5th when a nearly brand new 737 Max 9 aircraft had its door latch detached, scrutiny of Boeing has been intensifying.
The subsequent multiple accidents further plunged Boeing into a crisis of trust and led to a large-scale restructuring of senior management.
Another financial path is blocked
Due to the limited production of the 737 under close supervision by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the 787 Dreamplane is currently a key source of cash for Boeing. And Salehpur's recent report undoubtedly extends the focus of the outside world to the Dreamplane.
After these reports were made public, Connecticut Democratic Senator Richard Blumenthal announced that he had requested Boeing's outgoing CEO, Dave Calhoun, to attend a subcommittee hearing on April 17th aimed at reviewing Boeing's safety culture.
When asked if Calhoun or other executives plan to testify, Boeing stated, "Boeing understands the important supervisory responsibility of the subcommittee, and we are cooperating with the investigation... We have proposed providing documents, testimony, and technical briefings, and are discussing the next steps with the subcommittee."
In another statement, Boeing questioned Salehpur's claims. Boeing pointed out that at the beginning of this decade, under close supervision by FAA, the company discovered a large number of minor structural defects at the connection of the carbon fiber bucket section, thus suspending the delivery of the 787 aircraft for nearly two years.
The statement stated, "These allegations regarding the structural integrity of the 787 are inaccurate and do not represent Boeing's comprehensive efforts to ensure the quality and long-term safety of the aircraft."
Boeing also stated that its engineers are "conducting a detailed analysis to determine any long-term inspections and maintenance required under the supervision of the Federal Aviation Administration.".
In terms of stock price, Boeing closed down 1.9% on Tuesday, with the largest drop of 2.5% on the day, reaching a five month low. Boeing's cumulative decline since the beginning of this year has approached 32%, making it the worst performing component of the Dow Jones Industrial Average.