Post by flyjoe180 on Jan 19, 2008 14:55:13 GMT 12
Boeing is pushing back first test flight and deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner by about three months, as it struggles with outsourced production of the new, carbon-fibre airplane.
The delay is the second major setback for the programme in three months, after the plane maker announced a six-month delay in October, and could mean Boeing will have to pay costly penalties to airlines waiting for planes.
Boeing abandoned its target of delivering 109 of the 787s by the end of 2009 and said it was working with suppliers and customers to establish a new schedule.
The new delay comes only a month after Boeing's commercial aircraft chief assured Wall Street that the plane was on track to meet its revised schedule.
Air New Zealand said yesterday it had not yet been advised any delay in its order of eight Dreamliner 787 aircraft, due here at the end of 2010.
Air New Zealand was one of the first airlines to place a firm order.
Spokesperson Tracey Palmer said it continued to be reassured by Boeing that its 787-9 programme remained on schedule.
"In the event that Air NZ does experience any delivery delays, we have retained sufficient flexibility in our portfolio of leased and owned aircraft to ensure no capacity shortfall arises and we can continue to support existing demand and our expansion plans."
Boeing shares were 2.6 per cent higher to $US79.90 ($NZ103.41) in early afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, after losing 4.7 per cent on Tuesday, when word of the delay leaked out.
The Chicago-based company said on Wednesday the first test flight of the plane would now take place around the end of the second quarter, compared with its previous target of near the end of March.
First deliveries of the plane are now scheduled for early 2009, rather than its previous estimate of late November or December this year.
Getting all the plane's systems working together – known as "power on" in the industry – is now scheduled for April, rather than the end of this month.
Boeing said the major problem was the length of time it took to perform work on certain parts delivered by its suppliers, rather than specific part shortages.
Executives did not point the finger at any individual suppliers, but said work on the fuselage was causing significant problems.
Major suppliers on the 787's fuselage are Spirit Aerosystems Holdings and Vought Aircraft Industries from the United States, and Alenia, which is a unit of Italy's Finmeccanica.
The plane maker is still struggling with "start-up issues in our factory and in our extended global supply-chain," commercial airplane chief Scott Carson said in a statement.
"The rate at which jobs are being completed has not improved sufficiently to maintain the current schedule," he added.
On a conference call, Carson and 787 programme head Pat Shanahan said it was taking longer than expected to complete work in its own Seattle area assembly facility that should have been done by suppliers in their own factories.
"We underestimated how long it would take to complete somebody else's work," Shanahan said.
Boeing's original, revolutionary plan was to outsource almost all the production of the plane to others, then simply connect the pieces itself.
The company said the new delay would not have a significant effect on 2008 results, but it would update its financial forecasts for this year when it reports quarterly earnings on Jan. 30. It plans to provide financial forecasts for 2009 when it reports first-quarter earnings at the end of April.
www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4360625a6026.html
The delay is the second major setback for the programme in three months, after the plane maker announced a six-month delay in October, and could mean Boeing will have to pay costly penalties to airlines waiting for planes.
Boeing abandoned its target of delivering 109 of the 787s by the end of 2009 and said it was working with suppliers and customers to establish a new schedule.
The new delay comes only a month after Boeing's commercial aircraft chief assured Wall Street that the plane was on track to meet its revised schedule.
Air New Zealand said yesterday it had not yet been advised any delay in its order of eight Dreamliner 787 aircraft, due here at the end of 2010.
Air New Zealand was one of the first airlines to place a firm order.
Spokesperson Tracey Palmer said it continued to be reassured by Boeing that its 787-9 programme remained on schedule.
"In the event that Air NZ does experience any delivery delays, we have retained sufficient flexibility in our portfolio of leased and owned aircraft to ensure no capacity shortfall arises and we can continue to support existing demand and our expansion plans."
Boeing shares were 2.6 per cent higher to $US79.90 ($NZ103.41) in early afternoon trading on the New York Stock Exchange, after losing 4.7 per cent on Tuesday, when word of the delay leaked out.
The Chicago-based company said on Wednesday the first test flight of the plane would now take place around the end of the second quarter, compared with its previous target of near the end of March.
First deliveries of the plane are now scheduled for early 2009, rather than its previous estimate of late November or December this year.
Getting all the plane's systems working together – known as "power on" in the industry – is now scheduled for April, rather than the end of this month.
Boeing said the major problem was the length of time it took to perform work on certain parts delivered by its suppliers, rather than specific part shortages.
Executives did not point the finger at any individual suppliers, but said work on the fuselage was causing significant problems.
Major suppliers on the 787's fuselage are Spirit Aerosystems Holdings and Vought Aircraft Industries from the United States, and Alenia, which is a unit of Italy's Finmeccanica.
The plane maker is still struggling with "start-up issues in our factory and in our extended global supply-chain," commercial airplane chief Scott Carson said in a statement.
"The rate at which jobs are being completed has not improved sufficiently to maintain the current schedule," he added.
On a conference call, Carson and 787 programme head Pat Shanahan said it was taking longer than expected to complete work in its own Seattle area assembly facility that should have been done by suppliers in their own factories.
"We underestimated how long it would take to complete somebody else's work," Shanahan said.
Boeing's original, revolutionary plan was to outsource almost all the production of the plane to others, then simply connect the pieces itself.
The company said the new delay would not have a significant effect on 2008 results, but it would update its financial forecasts for this year when it reports quarterly earnings on Jan. 30. It plans to provide financial forecasts for 2009 when it reports first-quarter earnings at the end of April.
www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/4360625a6026.html
