Boeing 737 MAX production hit by a new defect in supplier part

Only days after reporting a surge in 737 MAX jet deliveries last month, Boeing revealed Thursday deliveries of the aircraft will be substantially slowed due to a new defect in a part from supplier Spirit AeroSystems.

The defect will require rework on finished MAXs not yet delivered as well as those currently on the assembly line.

Spirit said the newly discovered problem may date back four years, and so could potentially affect most of the planes built since the jet was grounded in 2019 after two fatal crashes.

“This is not an immediate safety of flight issue and the in-service fleet can continue operating safely,” Boeing said in a statement. “However, the issue will likely affect a significant number of undelivered 737 MAX airplanes, both in production and in storage.”

“We expect lower near-term 737 MAX deliveries while this required work is completed,” Boeing added.

Spirit, which builds the entire MAX fuselage in Wichita, Kansas, notified Boeing on Wednesday that “a non-standard manufacturing process” was used during the installation of two fittings at the vertical tail of certain 737 MAX 7, MAX 8 and MAX 8-200 models, as well as on the 737-based P-8 military plane for the U.S. Navy.

The fittings involved are two of eight points where the vertical fin is attached to the fuselage.

That means the parts don’t conform to Federal Aviation Administration regulatory requirements.

Spirit said in a statement that it has “identified a quality issue on the aft fuselage section of certain models of the 737 fuselage that Spirit builds.”

“Spirit is working to develop an inspection and repair for the affected fuselages,” the statement added.

Ron Epstein, a financial analyst with Bank of America who has an aerospace engineering degree, expressed amazement at yet another defect belatedly surfacing now despite all the scrutiny on the MAX since the two crashes.

“How could they have missed this after four years when they were supposed to have looked at everything with a fine-tooth comb?” Epstein said.

Boeing said it notified the FAA on Wednesday. It has begun conducting inspections and will, where necessary, replace the defective fittings.

The only MAX model not affected is the MAX 9.

In a statement, the FAA said that “based on the facts and data Boeing presented, the FAA validated the company’s assessment that there is no immediate safety issue.”

“The FAA is in close communication with Boeing and will continue to evaluate all new affected airplanes prior to delivery,” the safety agency added.

Boeing is still working to understand the full scale of the problem.

“We will provide additional information in the days and weeks ahead as we better understand the delivery impacts,” the company said.

Pending further analysis, Boeing hedged on whether some MAXs already in service will have to be reworked, too.

Since the jet returned to service in December 2020, more than 750 MAXs have been delivered to customers.

“We will follow our normal process in determining what action, if any, will be required for the in-service fleet,” Boeing said.

Boeing released the news after the stock market closed. In after-hours trading, its share price, which had risen $1.25 for the day to $213.59, fell more than $10 to below $203.