Boeing resumes 767 freighter deliveries after three-month pause

By Valerie Insinna

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -Boeing Co said on Wednesday it had restarted deliveries of its widebody 767 after a three-month pause caused by supplier quality issues.

The U.S. planemaker was forced to halt deliveries of the 767F freighter and KC-46 tanker earlier this year after it discovered center fuel tanks made by a supplier were not properly sealed.

Boeing (NYSE:) declined to comment on when 767 deliveries restarted, but flight data shows it handed over a 767F freighter to FedEx (NYSE:) on March 24. The same day, Boeing’s defense unit tweeted that a KC-46 tanker had been delivered to the U.S. Air Force.

Another FedEx freighter flew from Paine Field north of Seattle to Indianapolis on Tuesday.

Before that, its most recent 767 deliveries occurred in December.

While Boeing maintained the fuel tank issue would not impact its ability to meet annual delivery goals, the company had to remove and repaint the center fuel tank of affected aircraft before deliveries could resume.

Stan Deal, head of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, told reporters last week that the company would resume 767 freighter deliveries “shortly,” with KC-46 tanker deliveries following afterwards.

“We have a paint adhesion (problem), the sealer did not adhere properly. So, we’ve got to go in and make sure that it’s all conforming. It’s taken quite a bit of time to do,” Deal said, adding that the company was still evaluating how many aircraft will need to be reworked.

Aircraft deliveries are closely monitored by Wall Street, as customers hand over the bulk of their payment to Boeing when they pick up their planes. However, the influx of cash from 767 deliveries may be partially offset by a new charge on the KC-46 program caused by the fuel tank flaw.

Boeing will disclose the charge, which is expected to be lower than $500 million, during its first-quarter earnings on April 26, Chief Financial Officer Brian West said in March.

Under the terms of its fixed-price contract with the U.S. Air Force, Boeing is responsible for paying for all expenses in excess of $4.9 billion and has taken $6.8 billion in charges so far.

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