Meanwhile Back at the Ranch: Boeing Faces Program Delays

Business Week reports that Boeing's highly extended and is facing problems integrating the different supplier components in the new 787 project. It is reported that there have been failures of barrel sections in testing, and BW seems to think that because of multi layer carbon fiber construction, the potential for strength sapping voids is great. In addition, the 'total electric living' environment is proving more difficult than was originally thought and as usual there are software snags.

The upshot of this is the potential for Boeing to do a backwoods imitation of the scurrying and scrambling and latching on to goofy excuses for program delays-something the folks at Festung Airbus know plenty about these days. Who knows? If it works out right, Boeing may be able to hire some of the Festung's flak catchers for a price.