The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Spirit AeroSystems, a supplier of fuselages for Boeing and wings for Airbus, are investigating counterfeit titanium found in recently manufactured jets.
According to The New York Times, who first reported the news, falsified documents were used to verify the material’s authenticity—prompting concerns about the structural integrity of the airliners. The investigation comes as small holes were found in the material due to corrosion.
The use of fake titanium affects certain Boeing 737 Max and 787 Dreamliner airliners, as well as Airbus A220 jets, according to sources who spoke anonymously to The New York Times. It is unclear how many of the aircraft are in service and which airlines own them.
In a statement, Spirit AeroSystems said, “This is about titanium that has entered the supply system via documents that have been counterfeited. When this was identified, all suspect parts were quarantined and removed from Spirit production.” The company added, “More than 1,000 tests have been completed to confirm the mechanical and metallurgical properties of the affected material to ensure continued airworthiness.”
Both Boeing and Airbus reported their testing of the affected materials has not revealed any issues and airworthiness of their aircraft fleets remain uncompromised.
