Boeing says it’s inspecting undelivered 787s for fastener issue

Boeing said it’s inspecting undelivered 787 Dreamliners after discovering that fasteners were incorrectly installed on a section of the carbon-composite aircraft, underscoring the heightened scrutiny on quality lapses at the embattled manufacturer. The issue is the latest to come to light as US regulators ramp up oversight of Boeing following a near-catastrophe with another jet model, the 737 Max, earlier this year. The US Federal Aviation Administration is also probing the 787 quality defect, the agency said. The FAA has “multiple active investigations” into the planemaker underway following a rise in reports from whistleblowers and through its safety hotline, FAA chief Michael Whitaker said at a Senate hearing on Thursday. “You expect to see an increase in reports when you have a safe place for employees to report, so that’s what we want to see,” Whitaker told reporters after the hearing. “We would be a little concerned if we weren’t seeing an increase in numbers.” The fastener misstep underscores how Boeing continues to unearth manufacturing errors as it works to tighten up quality standards after a door plug blew off a 737 Max mid-flight in January. US investigators have said the panel was missing four bolts meant to hold it in place, a revelation that unleashed withering scrutiny of the planemaker from regulators, airlines and the public. The company hasn’t halted deliveries of the 787 as it determines whether any repairs will be needed to fix the incorrectly torqued fasteners, which connect the mid-section of the carbon-composite barrels to interior strengthening components. The FAA said in a statement that the problem doesn’t pose an immediate flight-safety issue.<br/>