Boeing Reaches Another 787 Milestone, but Strike Takes Toll on Company

Boeing has received plenty of unwanted press lately, so the company must be happy it has something good to talk about.

The jetmaker reached another milestone in its
787 Dreamlinerprogram Saturday, completing what is known as a high-blow test on a 787 static test aircraft. During the test, which is designed to assess airframe durability, pressure was slowly jacked up inside the plane until it reached 150 percent of the level you'd typically expect to see in service -- 14.9 pounds per square inch. The high-blow test, which took nearly two hours, is one of three static tests that must be cleared prior to first flight.

It comes on the heels of
several other successful testsfor the 787 this year, including first movement of the plane's hydraulic systems, tests on the plane's horizontal stabilizer and a series of procedures to measure the integrity of the 787's electrical systems.

That's the good news.

The not so good news is that a strike by the International
Association of Machinists continues to drag on, with little chance of
short-term resolution. Boeing has
not officially negotiated with the machinists unionsince
the strike began a month ago, according to
The Seattle Times, and the company's CEO suggested in a
letter that the union's demands risk turning Seattle into another
Detroit. The strike is now affecting Boeing suppliers in Connecticut
and California, and has forced the company to negotiate compensation
deals with airlines that will be hit by production delays.

Goldman Sachs, anticipating a long strike, lowered its earnings estimate for Boeing on Monday, and the company's stock price cratered accordingly.

Photo: Boeing