Boeing has halted production of the 747 and Next Generation 737 temporarily, to give suppliers time to make up parts shortages which have delayed deliveries. The company will deliver between five and ten fewer Next Generation 737s, and four or five fewer 747s, than planned this year.
Production of the 747 was halted for 20 working days early in October, to allow workers to catch up with out-of-sequence tasks caused by late parts deliveries. No aircraft will move down the assembly line during the hiatus, but aircraft already in paint and flight test will be completed and delivered. Production will be restarted when out-of-sequence work "-is down to a manageable level".
The manufacturer has taken advantage of a delay in certification of the 737-700 to halt production for 25 working days from mid-October, to allow suppliers to catch up. In this case, aircraft will continue to move down the assembly line, with workers installing parts as they become available. Boeing had planned to deliver ten to 15 737-700s in the fourth quarter. It now expects to deliver "five to ten".
Certification of the 737-700 has been delayed while Boeing stiffens the horizontal stabiliser to eliminate vibration. It is now expected in late October. Boeing says that it is "rebalancing" production to re-establish the sequential assembly schedule, which has been disrupted by parts shortages.
The first aircraft will be delivered to Southwest Airlines in November. Maersk Air, which will be the first European operator, expects to receive its first aircraft by "mid-November at the earliest", instead of late October as originally planned.
Production of the 757 and "classic" 737 (-300/400/500) is also behind schedule, but Boeing believes that it can work off out-of-sequence tasks without halting the assembly line.
Source: Flight International
