A current working theory (from people more expert than me) is that Spirit Aerosystems (who builds the fuselage) does a loose install of the door for transport to Boeing, who then does a final install of the interior. Since this door is usually removed for the interior installation the theory is that it isn’t and the loose install is what has ended up on otherwise flight worthy planes.
Always seems weird to me, like they aren’t going to be making plans bodies for many other customers, so now Boeing has to pay extra for each body since now spirit aerosystems wants to have growing profits on every thing they make.
A current working theory (from people more expert than me) is that Spirit Aerosystems (who builds the fuselage) does a loose install of the door for transport to Boeing, who then does a final install of the interior. Since this door is usually removed for the interior installation the theory is that it isn’t and the loose install is what has ended up on otherwise flight worthy planes.
Here’s how I think it went down:
Conference Room, Spirit Aerosystems:
“How can we reduce the hours needed to get the fuselages out of the door?”
“We could skip tightening the door plug bolts. After all, they use them at Boeing to finish the interiors so it will actually save them time, too.”
“Johnson, get this man a promotion!”
Later that year
Conference Room, Boeing
“How can we reduce the hours needed to finish these interiors?”
“We could just skip removing the door plugs and do it all from the actual doors. Then we don’t have to re-do something already done at the supplier”
“Johnson, get this man a promotion!”
So, lack of communication. That does seem to be a core part of problems in any place.
Especially when you know that Spirit Aerosystems used to be a part of Boeing that they sold of as a cost cutting measure
Always seems weird to me, like they aren’t going to be making plans bodies for many other customers, so now Boeing has to pay extra for each body since now spirit aerosystems wants to have growing profits on every thing they make.
The savings is the deferred liability. Supposedly. They still stamp ‘Boeing’ on the turd.