Exclusive - Boeing presses suppliers on tightening bolts after loose parts found in 737 MAX 9 checks
By Valerie Insinna and David Shepardson
WASHINGTON (Reuters) — Boeing (NYSE:BA) issued a bulletin to its suppliers late last week that laid out practices to ensure bolts are properly torqued after multiple airlines reported loose hardware during inspections of the grounded 737 MAX 9, according to a memo seen by Reuters.
The U.S. planemaker said that it is «imperative» that suppliers meet quality requirements, according to a Jan. 17 memo seen by Reuters, issued weeks after an accident when a panel ripped off of a 737 MAX 9 jet while in mid-air.
«Ensure that work instructions are mistake-proof and quality is continuously monitored — particularly torquing requirements,» it states.
The bulletin suggests suppliers document torque requirements on work instructions, require mechanics to record how much torque is applied when fastening components, and ensure tools are properly calibrated to ensure bolts are properly tightened.
Boeing declined to comment.
The updated guidance follows the Jan. 5 accident when an Alaska Airlines flight had to conduct an emergency landing after the panel, called a door plug, was blown off. The Federal Aviation Administration grounded 171 MAX 9 planes with the door panel configuration. In the days that followed, both United Airlines and Alaska Airlines said they had found loose parts on multiple MAX 9 aircraft.
Boeing has not changed its 737 supplier master schedule in the wake of the accident, the company said in a separate Jan. 22 email to suppliers seen by Reuters. The schedule, which lays out the expectation for when suppliers should be at a given production rate, calls for a production rate 42 of its 737s per month starting in February 2024.
Boeing's actual production rate can differ from the
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