| Author (Corporate) | Deutsche Welle |
|---|---|
| Series Title | Article |
| Series Details | 4.5.08 |
| Publication Date | 04/05/2008 |
| Content Type | News |
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Boeing delays Dreamliner debut Boeing has postponed the first deliveries of its 787 Dreamliner for a fourth time, moving the commercial debut of the aircraft into 2010, a delay of nearly two years. Beset by parts shortages, design problems and incomplete work by its suppliers, the 787 was originally slated to arrive in service this year. The delay will cost Boeing billions of dollars in compensation payments and has compelled the aircraft maker to take a short-term loss on the programme. It now expects to deliver the first aircraft in the first quarter of 2010 and has delayed the first test flight of from the end of this year to the second quarter of 2009. Boeing blamed the latest delay on a recent strike by machinists and a disruption caused by the replacement of certain fasteners on early-production aircraft. “Our industry team has made progress with structural testing, systems hardware qualification and production, but we must adjust our schedule for these two unexpected disruptions,” Scott Carson, president of Boeing’s commercial aeroplanes division, said on Thursday The 787 has had the most successful sales launch of any aircraft with 59 customers ordering 910 aircraft. The latest delay means Boeing is now almost as late as its European rival Airbus, which endured a costly two-year delay with its latest aircraft – the A380 superjumbo. The Chicago-based manufacturer has said it faces demands for compensation from customers for previous delays. But those payments are largely exempt from delays caused by the strike. Boeing said it would incorporate any fallout from the latest 787 delay in financial guidance it will release “at a later date”. The decision to lay some of the blame on the two-month strike by production staff drew frustration from several US airlines executives with 787 orders. Delays from such stoppages typically lasted no longer than the strike itself, give or take several weeks, they said. “It was a big, unplanned event for us and it did move the schedule out,” Boeing said of the strike on Thursday. Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2008 |
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| Source Link | http://www.dw-world.de/dw/article/0,2144,3310832,00.html |
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| Subject Categories | Business and Industry |
| Countries / Regions | Europe |
