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Jet maker outlines moves taken to address concerns about production problems, a year after Alaska Airlines incident
Boeing is conducting more surprise inspections at its factories as part of a broader plan to prevent manufacturing snafus like the one that led to a jet-panel blowout on an Alaska Air flight a year ago.
The jet maker outlined on Friday more than a dozen steps it has taken in recent months to tackle a manufacturing quality crisis that has forced Boeing to slow production and has put it under the microscope of federal regulators. Some of the steps have been previously reported.
Boeing restarted production at its 737 factory in December after a machinists strike stopped work for several months. The company is still producing far fewer 737 MAXs per month than it was in the months before the Alaska Airlines accident.
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Some 33,000 machinists returned to work in November after securing new labor deal
Boeing has resumed production across its 737, 767, 777/777X airplane programs.
The jet maker’s factories in the Pacific Northwest have come back online using a safety-management system to identify and address potential issues and ensure an orderly restart, Chief Operating Officer Stephanie Pope said on LinkedIn.
“In particular, we have taken time to ensure all manufacturing teammates are current on training and certifications, while positioning inventory at the optimal levels for smooth production,” said Pope, who also serves as executive vice president, president and chief executive of Boeing commercial airplanes.
Boeing earlier in the month said it had restarted production of its bestselling 737 MAX jets, nearly three months after the company’s machinists union began a debilitating strike. Some 33,000 machinists returned to work in November after securing a new four-year labor deal.
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It plans to boost production of the plane to 10 a month by 2026
Boeing will invest $1 billion in its South Carolina operations to boost production of its 787 Dreamliner jets, seeking to address a growing backlog caused by problems ranging from manufacturing snafus and safety issues to a lack of parts.
The Virginia-based company said late Thursday that the outlay will go toward expansion and infrastructure upgrades to help meet higher production targets of the wide-body jet.
Boeing reiterated plans to boost production of the plane to 10 a month by 2026, up from a rate of about five a month late last year.
The plan will also create 500 new jobs over the next five years, it said.
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European plane maker Airbus plans to deliver more aircraft this year while its U.S. rival Boeing faces delays.
Airbus posted higher revenue and profit for the first quarter, backed its goal to deliver more planes this year than in 2023 and decided to increase production of its A350 wide-body jets, extending its lead over beleaguered rival Boeing.
The European plane maker confirmed its target to deliver about 800 commercial aircraft to customers this year, more than the 735 planes it dispatched in 2023.
Airbus’s optimism that deliveries will keep growing comes as Boeing grapples with the fallout from an Alaska Airlines emergency landing in January after a door plug ripped away in midair, prompting a temporary grounding and immediate inspections of Boeing 737 MAX jets.
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