FAA bøtelegger Boeing for å ha levert defekte deler til B737 NG - Curt Lewis / Aviation Daily

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FAA seeks $3.9 million fine from Boeing for defective parts on 737 NG planes


Aerial photos show Boeing 737 Max airplanes on the tarmac in Seattle

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Friday it seeks to impose a $3.9 million (£3.04 million) fine on Boeing Co , alleging it failed to prevent the installation of defective parts on about 130 737 NG airplanes.

The FAA alleged that Boeing "failed to adequately oversee its suppliers to ensure they complied with the company's quality assurance system ... Boeing knowingly submitted aircraft for final FAA airworthiness certification after determining that the parts could not be used due to a failed strength test."

In a statement on Friday, Boeing did not admit liability but said they were aware of the FAA's concerns.

"We are working closely with our customers to take the appropriate corrective actions," spokesman Charles Bickers said.

The company has 30 days to respond either by paying the fine or challenging it; Boeing said it would review the penalty.

The FAA disclosed in June that 300 NG and 737 MAX airplanes could contain improperly manufactured parts and said it would require these parts to be quickly replaced. The fine announced on Friday only relates to NG airplane components, the FAA said, but it is continuing to review the issue as it relates to the MAX.

The parts at issue are tracks on the leading edge of the wings used to guide the movement of slats that provide additional lift during takeoff and landing, the FAA said. The issue could result in a slat striking an airplane, potentially resulting in injury to passengers or preventing a safe landing.

The FAA said Boeing's oversight failure "resulted in the installation of slat tracks that were weakened by a condition known as hydrogen embrittlement that occurred during cadmium-titanium plating."

Boeing reiterated on Friday it had not been informed of any in-service issues related to the batch of slat tracks in question. It added that "all affected 737 NGs have been inspected and all slat track installations determined to be required have been completed on the NGs."

The NG is the third-generation 737 that the company began building in 1997.

Boeing's safety record has come under criticism from some in Congress, as has the FAA's certification of the 737 MAX, which has been grounded since March after two fatal crashes killed 346 people. Boeing said it will ensure "all inspections and any necessary part replacements are performed on all 737 MAXs before they return to service."

FAA: Boeing Knowingly Installed Faulty 737 Parts

Dec 6, 2019Sean Broderick | Aviation Daily

Boeing

Boeing faces a $4 million fine for failing to ensure a supplier was delivering airworthy 737 slat tracks and then not rejecting them once the issue came to light, causing the FAA to issue an airworthiness directive to ensure the defective parts were removed from in-service aircraft, the agency said.

A civil penalty letter sent by FAA to Boeing Dec. 6 reveals that a plating process done by Southwest United Industries (SUI) introduced weakness, or hydrogen embrittlement, in 233 sets of slat tracks made in mid-2018. SUI informed slat track manufacturer Kencoa Industries, which told Spirit AeroSystems. Spirit contacted Boeing in September 2018 and recommended the OEM accept the parts “as-is,” the FAA letter said. Boeing rejected this and told Spirit to file a “notice of escapement,” or declaration by a supplier of a problem with its products.

During its work, SUI followed the wrong part-marking procedure, which meant a required protective coating was not applied. This caused some of the markings to be “partially or completely obscured,” the FAA said.

Despite the issues, the parts ended up on Boeing’s 737 production line in Renton, Washington and some were apparently installed on 133 737NGs delivered from Aug. 16, 2018, to May 2, 2019—including at least one that went to a military customer. The rest may have ended up on 737 MAXs, Boeing determined.

Boeing issued an alert service bulletin on June 4, telling operators to inspect their aircraft for the defective slat tracks. The FAA mandated the checks in a June 10 directive that said the parts could be on 133 NGs and 179 MAXs. The directive did not explain why Boeing could not positively identify which aircraft had the parts. The civil penalty letter said that SUI’s improper coatings made it “difficult to identify the affected parts.”

Boeing said in a Dec. 6 statement that “all affected 737NGs have been inspected” and parts replaced where required. “Further, we will ensure that all inspections and any necessary part replacements are performed on all 737 MAXs before they return to service,” it added.

“Boeing failed to maintain its quality system by failing to detect improperly marked slat tracks, installing improperly marked slat tracks in aircraft, and not managing supplier quality,” the FAA letter said. Boeing used parts “that should have been rejected and subsequently [certified] that the aircraft were airworthy,” it added.

Neither the letter nor Boeing’s statement explain how the parts got into the 737’s production system once the manufacturer realized they did not conform.

Boeing has not received any in-service reports of slat track failures linked to the production issue.