LOS ANGELES - Boeing Co. may be seeing some light at the end of the tunnel in aircraft aluminum extrusions, as market sources also report it is moving to implement a proposed arrangement which would help to ease a supply pinch in the hard alloy shapes.
New capacity at both established and recently established mills are helping to close a gap which earlier this year made extrusions one of the biggest supply problems for the world’s largest airplane manufacturer.
Boeing’s Renton, Wash., plant; which produces the 737 and 757 airliners, was “not operational” late last week, although some buildings were open, according to a spokeswoman for Boeing Commercial Airplane Group.
This contract includes options that could, if exercised, extend the WGS effort through December 2010 at a value of up to $1,305,800,000. The work will be performed at Boeing’s facility in El Segundo, Calif. There were two firms solicited and two proposals received. Solicitation began June 2000; negotiations were completed December 2000. At this time, $90,400,000 of the contracting funds have been obligated. The work is expected to be completed January 2003. Space and Missile Systems Center, Los Angeles, Calif., is the contracting activity (F04701-00/C-0011).
Boeing Co, the US aircraft manufacturer, has reached an agreement with the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) over the redesign of the rudder on all Boeing 737 aircraft.
The FAA has also agreed to announce new training procedures for pilots to use when rudder problems occur since the rudder redesign will likely take years to implement.
Concerns with the rudder mechanism on Boeing 737s arose after fatal aircraft accidents in Colorado in 1991 and Pennsylvania in 1994. Changes were made to the rudder controls following these accidents, which appear to have prevented any further problems; however Boeing has stated that the new steps are the ultimate in safety improvement according to the Associated Press.
Boeing is currently in the process of developing the redesign and will submit this to the FAA for approval when completed. The FAA is then expected to release an airworthiness directive sometime in 2001 ordering the changes. Companies will have about five years to make the changes in aircraft currently flying.
Submission: 31 March 2000
