Report: US 8k8 free to 88presidential jet production hits snags

Boeing's production of a new jet used by the president of the United States, already behind schedule, has been disrupted by problems, according to a media report.

One mishap involved a pair of attempts to place one of two jets under development onto jacks, but the weight on some of the jacks exceeded the limit and risked damaging the aircraft, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. The US Air Force said the jacking mishaps didn't result in any damage to the jet. 

That happened last year after two empty tequila bottles were found on one of the two planes being built at Boeing's San Antonio, Texas, facility, though alcohol is banned at all the plane makers' factories. Boeing hasn't found who was responsible for leaving the bottles, the people familiar with the matter said.

The jets are known as Air Force One when the president is on board. They are heavily modified 747-8 Boeing aircraft. President Donald Trump had criticized the plane maker for the high costs of building the jets. The company received a $3.9 billion contract in 2018 to build and deliver two by the end of 2024.

Boeing has told the Pentagon that delivery may be delayed by 17 months, but an Air Force spokeswoman said the military branch expects the planes to be 24 months late. 

When the jacking problems were reviewed later, the Air Force later found that a Boeing employee involved wasn't properly credentialed for overseeing the work, crews didn't follow established procedures and another employee involved in the operations failed a routine post-incident drug test, the Journal reported.

The Boeing employee who oversaw the jacking operations had relevant experience with such work but not in a leadership role, according to another person familiar with the matter.

An Air Force spokeswoman said the Pentagon's contractor-management agency formally requested Boeing improve its operations, "citing documentation, procedural, and training shortfalls".

"The situation was corrected, and actions taken to prevent reoccurrence," the Air Force spokeswoman said.

A Boeing spokesman declined to comment on the mishaps.

Boeing is a major supplier of military aircraft and hardware to the US and its allies. Its commercial business suffered from the pandemic's hit to air travel and a nearly two-year grounding of its 737 MAX aircraft following two fatal crashes. 

On March 21, a China Eastern Airlines Boeing 737-800 that was 7 years old crashed into a mountain in southern China, killing all 123 passengers and nine crew. Two flight recorders have been recovered from the crash,  Chinese media have said.