It is unclear how the work stoppage will impact the delivery of the 787, which is already two years behind schedule. Earlier the company announced that it had found a separate structural flaw where the wings meet the body of the plane. That flaw set back the Dreamliner’s first test flight of which Boeing still has not rescheduled nor has it updated its delivery schedule.
The latest problem consists of tiny wrinkles in the fuselage skin on either side of the plane, just behind the wings. To repair them, new layers of carbon composite material are being added to a 787 at its South Carolina factory. Twenty-two other planes also must be patched.
Boeing is designing a permanent fix to the wrinkle problem so future versions of the plane won’t have to be modified, but the existing fuselage wrinkles will not compromise the flight safety of the 787s, according to Boeing.