Boeing 787 Dreamliners Face Delivery Delays

The potential defect is not "an immediate safety of flight issue and the in-service fleet may continue to operate," Boeing said in a statement. "We have notified the FAA and our customers and are keeping them informed of our progress.”

According to Boeing, the affected component is an attachment fitting on the horizontal stabilizer. The part is provided by a supplier and installed on the horizontal stabilizer at Boeing’s Salt Lake City facility. 

At the present time Boeing’s technical team is developing a rework plan to address issues on aircraft already in inventory.

Yesterday the aerospace giant announced the discovery of the issue and stressed that although it could potentially delay some near-term deliveries, it did not expect it to be a long-term issue as airplanes that were found to have a nonconforming condition would be reworked prior to delivery. 

The company previously announced expectations to deliver approximately 80 Dreamliners this year.

The news comes close on the heels of another aircraft delivery pause. In February, Boeing halted 787 Dreamliner deliveries in order to address a paperwork issue after the company discovered an analysis error by a supplier relating to the aircraft's forward pressure bulkhead.

Boeing notified the FAA of the issue and paused 787 deliveries in order to complete the required analysis and documentation.