After an FAA-imposed limit on production and a 53-day machinist strike, it’s safe to say that Boeing isn’t building as many planes as it used to. Boeing and its European rival Airbus are now looking to use thermoplastics to ramp up assembly times drastically for their next generation of airliners. Both aviation giants announced these ambitions and floated a target of building 100 planes a month during an industry conference in Paris last week.
Airbus and Boeing are exploring how they could replace tried and tested aluminum with thermoplastics to implement cutting-edge production methods on future models, Reuters reports. Composite components could be bonded together using ultrasonic welding instead of riveting. These materials also wouldn’t have to be cured in an autoclave like the carbon fiber-reinforced plastic used on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. The next-generation jets would be cheaper and faster to build, which would be music to shareholders’ ears.
Composites have been proven to be strong and durable enough for airlines. Carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic was put to the ultimate test last year when a Japan Airlines Airbus A350-900 collided with another plane at Haneda Airport in Tokyo. All 367 passengers and 12 crew members escaped the burning aircraft safely in 18 minutes before the fuselage was completely engulfed in flames.
Boeing’s FAA-imposed production cap is still in place
The shift in construction processes would likely face fierce scrutiny from the FAA. Boeing is still under intense oversight after a door plug blowout on an Alaska Airlines Boeing 737 Max over Portland, Oregon last year. Regulators initially halted production of the 737 Max as the planemaker was investigated. Once production was restarted, Boeing was limited to building 38 planes per month. According to the Seattle Times, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy stated the cap will remain in place for the foreseeable future.
Despite the regulatory hurdles, Boeing is understandably committed to increasing its plane throughput. The manufacturer has a backlog of nearly 5,600 orders and only delivered 348 planes last year. Boeing’s lack of quality control as it pushed out as many planes as possible created this dilemma, costing the company billions of dollars, but the only way out is building planes even faster. Can you dig your way out of a hole?