In today’s afternoon headlines at Military.com we have a story on the shut-down of Boeing’s CH-47 line in PA.
Army criminal investigators are looking into problems found in two military helicopters on a production line at a Boeing Co. plant in suburban Philadelphia, prompting the company to shut down the line.
A Boeing spokesman said Wednesday that aircraft at the plant were being inspected. The company didn’t disclose specifics about why it shut down the H-47 Chinook line at Boeing Rotorcraft Systems plant in Ridley Township, Pa., on Tuesday. Employees reported to work Wednesday morning, but the line had yet to fully resume operations.
U.S. Rep. Joe Sestak, a Democrat whose district includes the plant, said he was told during a briefing that wires that appeared to be broken or severed were found in one helicopter and a suspicious washer was found in a second.
Sestak said the assessment was preliminary and he expected the findings of a more thorough review would be available later Wednesday. He praised Boeing’s handling of the situation, and said it was too early to speculate on what happened.
Dave Foster, an Army spokesman, said in an e-mail that normal production was expected to resume shortly.
“At present, this is thought to be an isolated incident, confined to these two aircraft,” Foster said.
Foster said the Defense Contract Management Agency was overseeing the situation.
All aircraft on the premises were being inspected, said Jack Satterfield, a company spokesman. But he said the shutdown was isolated to one line at the plant and did not affect helicopters already in use by the military.
The Defense Criminal Investigative Service had agents on the premises conducting interviews, said Gary Comerford, a spokesman for the agency. Army Criminal Investigation Command spokesman Christopher Grey confirmed the agency was also involved in the investigation, but said he could not comment on it.
The Chinook is known as the Army’s workhorse aircraft. It is used to transport troops and supplies.
Boeing is currently producing new Chinooks for the Army, as well as updating older models.
Now, I’m sure these are isolated incidents. But still, with a tough protest fight going on in the CSAR-X program, this certianly can’t help matters in that arena at all.
Boeing’s sure taking some licks these days, huh?
– Christian
{ 10 comments… read them below or add one }
It seems to me you buried the lede here, Christian.
Boeing’s troubles are small potatoes compared to potential sabotage of military aircraft coming off a production line.
I’m eager to hear why CID is investigating what appears to be (at first reading) a manufacturing issue. Did a suspect Chinook crash somewhere?
As long as the aircraft didn’t get off the line before criminal investigations began it’s a good thing. Although it is disturbing that sabotage is a possibility, I would like to think it is just a manufacturing defect.
Many years ago, while stationed at Nellis AFB, they had a mad wire cutter on the loose. The guy would pop open access panels and procede to cut chunks of wiring inside wiring harnesses. To his credit he didn’t attempt to hide the damage, but instead left the panel wide open. They eventually got the guy. He might actually be out of Leavenworth by now.
The wording in the articles isnt clear( probably on purpose) but is this suspected sabotage or a manufacturing defect. Are the wires cut or are they just pulling out of their contacts?
And I dont see what this would do but hurt Boeing since it would have to be fixed before they could even send the choppers to the Army.
The CH-47 is way past the age when it should be replaced, if for no other reason than they are just plain old worn out. Replace them ASAP.
They are replacing them. I believe the Army just ordered something like 140 brand newly built CH-47F’s. The design works so as long as they build new ones and trash the old ones we are OK until the need for something bigger/better comes along.
JD: “The Last Time we faced a religious war, (against Japan), it took a Nuke to finish it.”
If you’re going to advance a theory from the lunatic fringe, it would help if you didn’t found it on “facts” that have absolutely no foundation in reality. Religious fervor never drove their aggression during WWII (and, in fact, I don’t think it was ever much of a factor in Japanese history). That can be explained purely from their intense and unshakable nationalistic conviction in their own superiority that justified any and all actions.
I have no desire to feed the trolls, but first we get the nutballs trying to cite the provably fabricated “Protocols of the Elders of Zion” as fact, and now this. Assuming these things are serious, I find these things disturbing and noxious enough to drive me off the comments, and possibly DT as a whole.
i heard the new order of CH-47′s were on hold until the came to some agreements after inspection. Bout like the car industry now.
Prob union guys pissed about a labor beef…..