Posted on 02/05/2024 6:58:57 AM PST by SeekAndFind
“They sure don’t build ‘em like they used to!”
Thank Goodness!
Quality is racist.
NOT!
I think I’ll hold off on flying anywhere for awhile. They need to get this stuff sorted out.
Good news! It is better then a 50/50 chance of the fuselage ripping apart on your next flight....
Our motto for mis-drilled holes?: Good enough!
FTA: As of Friday, the “non-conformance” or quality defect had been found in 22 fuselages out of 47 inspected up to that point, spread between Boeing and Spirit, and may exist in some 737s in service, the sources said.
-snip-
People familiar with the matter said Boeing and Spirit have yet to come with an agreed position on how many of the mis-drilled holes have to be addressed, and how many of the errors are so slight that the fuselages can be used “as is”.
It could be angry white guys doing sabotage.
DEI creates that as well.
It's not the students. I've dealt with technicians who screwed up royally. I asked them for the drawings. Not only did they build it wrong, it was their drawings they didn't follow.
They measured it, they drew it, and then they built it wrong. They were then angry that we demanded they redo it and that we weren't going to allow them to charge from our budget for the rework.
My wife and I have been aviation enthusiasts for as long as we can remember. We live on an airpark (airport with houses built around it). We store our two airplanes and four hang gliders in the hangar next to our house. Many of our neighbors are airline pilots and some other neighbors work for Boeing. Lots of them have made complaints about Boeing in the past, but not in the context that they aircraft are dangerous. Because the fact remains that Boeing produces very safe airplanes.
These constant threads attacking Boeing over what is basically are in reality nonsensical puff pieces get a little tiring. We all understand that you and others want us all to drive foreign cars and fly in foreign aircraft. The people we know who are or were long term Boeing employees have all been very conscientious people.
Boeing has an excellent safety record that goes back many decades. The people we know who are professional pilots who have thousands of hours flying Boeing aircraft, including my brother who has been an airline captain for decades appreciate the aircraft. Being a passenger in a Boeing aircraft is far safer than driving, riding in a bus, or riding on a train.
Flying has continually gotten safer over the years. Yet because of hit pieces such as this one we have many, many people who should know better but our afraid to go flying on an airliner. This campaign’s actual goal is to discourage people from flying for reasons that have nothing to do with safety. It is just more constant drumming for the global warming hoax which is not supported by actual facts, but because of constant propaganda now resonates with a large percentage of the population.
The reasons I refuse to fly have nothing to do with airline safety.
The airports treat us like concentration camp residents, and the airlines treat us like cattle.
Yuck.
They aren’t misdrilled holes. They are “lightening features.”
But in all reality. Stuff like this happens all the time in aircraft manufacturing. A hole will be too large or slightly off but rather than scrap what could be a $100,000 part they will issue a “non conformance report” and send it through the entire review board for a resolution. Which can be as simple as “document and use as is,” ,”rework” and worst case scenario, “scrap and destroy.”
(Recovering aircraft engineer”
Good point, although someone programmed the machine that drilled the holes. I had a tour of an auto plant some 20 years ago. Line workers were rather scarce even back then and they weren't drilling holes or doing welds..
what are you the FR post police? seattle is where the planes are made and the laws are very lax on illegal drugs in Seattle. captain may I.
The reason we prefer to fly to places in our own airplane instead of taking an airline is that by comparison it is the ultimate in independence and convenience.
With the airlines you have to fight traffic getting to the airport, show up early to park, check in, and check your bags... not to even mention all the “security” hoops there are to jump through.
We just throw our bags in the back of the plane with our folding tandem bicycle and we fly to a small airport in an out of the way spot that is usually much closer to our actual destination than the mega-airports the airlines use. Anywhere within about a thousand miles this is usually faster than taking a commercial flight.
Along the way you typically do not even see another airplane except when you are making a potty stop at a little airport. If you decide you want to get out and stretch your legs or visit some place along the route you are taking you just land the plane. We have found so many great little out of the way spots making completely unplanned stops.
One time on our way back from Southern California my wife said she was hungry, so we landed at a small airport in cental Oregon. We asked the person working there if there was any fast food nearby. She said, “Oh yeah” there is lots of places in town about two miles down the road.” We were going to unfold our tandem bicycle, but she said, “You can use my car.”
Then she added, “Don't mind my dog, she doesn't bite.” We thought it would be some crappy little airport car with a stinky mongrel dog. But it was a very nice Cadillac with a beautiful and very friendly poodle sitting in the back.
People are for more trusting and friendly in rural parts of the country. This was about 20 years ago so I imagine things have changed a bit there too, but it was like visiting Andy and Barney in Mayberry back then.
How could the Boeing employees NOT CATCH THIS during assembly???
Humans DO drill those holes. I know some of them personally. One of them ended up having to have rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders as a result of all the drilling.
It would amaze you how exacting things have to be. It’s not only the distance between holes, but the angle of it. Each bolt has to sit within that hole a specific way. I’ve seen the test pieces.
It’s not an easy job, that’s for sure.
“Humans DO drill those holes. I know some of them personally. One of them ended up having to have rotator cuff surgery on both shoulders as a result of all the drilling.”
Not any more.
Boeing Co. , said on Sunday it will have to do more work on about 50 undelivered 737 MAX airplanes, potentially delaying some near-term deliveries, after its supplier Spirit AeroSystems , discovered two mis-drilled holes on some fuselages.
The exact quantity affected isn't clear based on the narrative. It could be as simple as re-inspection of those 50 airplanes or as bad as rework/repair of any or all. That reinspection likely will involve teardown of advanced assembly planes and something more simple like a visual on those early in the fitting out phase of production where the frames may be exposed still.
The nature of the defect, incorrect margins on window frames could be a very critical defect when it comes to stress fractures. Beyond that, there is a possibility that the misdrills could be on delivered planes in service now, too.
I worked QA failure analysis and corrective action in a major aerospace company for 12 years on DC/KC-10 mid fuselage sections and 767 engine struts. There are all kinds of screw-up during fabrication and assembly. I still have the scars from epic battles with production control types but NOTHING got out the door that wasn't corrected and safe.
Most of this noise is media sensationalism preying on an uninformed public. Boeing bashing is a blood sport to them.
More holes means better ventilation, no?
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