Findings of FAA's special audit of Boeing factories
Key findings of the special audit of Boeing factories by the Federal Aviation Administration, Dec. 1, 1999 to Feb. 11, 2000:
Boeing lacks a comprehensive procedure to ensure commercial-airplane design changes comply with federal rules.
Existing procedures are not always followed, sometimes because engineers aren't aware of them.
Instructions for mechanics are not always adequate to ensure they build planes to specifications.
Mechanics sometimes do not follow instructions, either because they are unaware of them or because they do not understand their significance.
Inspections of completed work are not performed or are inadequate.
Of 100 factory workers interviewed, only 25 were able to access and understand the requirements for work they performed.
Of 125 products or assemblies audited for compliance with design, 55 did not meet design standards, 37 met standards but were not made according to plans or lacked documentation, and 33 passed muster unconditionally.
There were no known instances of safety knowingly being compromised.
Previous problems
Other problems revealed since September 1999, some of which inspired the special FAA audit:
Bolts attaching the tail fin to the fuselage of 767s were not tightened properly on one plane in service and others still in the Everett factory.
Plastic drip shields, which protect cockpit components from dribbles of condensation, and fiberglass air ducts installed on hundreds of in-service airplanes of various models did not meet flammability standards.
A corrosion-inhibiting coating applied to fuel-tank access doors was found to be flaking, creating the potential for fuel contamination. The affected doors were installed in a year's worth of all Boeing planes, except McDonnell Douglas models.
A supplier disclosed that a number of shipments of fasteners did not meet specifications.
A crack was found in a beam called a stringer as it was being installed on a 767-300, and Boeing determined that it and 31 identical parts for other planes had not been heat-treated by the supplier.
Loose nuts traced to a production problem were found on 10 in-service 737s in a mechanism that moves elevators, which are crucial control surfaces on the plane's tail.
The FAA proposed $741,000 in fines related to Boeing's failure in the late 1990s to adequately monitor quality control at certain suppliers. A final FAA decision on the fines is pending.
The FAA proposed fines totaling $892,000 because Boeing failed three times in recent years to promptly notify the agency of possible safety problems in various models.
Sources: FAA and Seattle Times research