(Newser)
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Production delays are plaguing Airbus and Boeing as the airplane manufacturers wait for simple supplies such as seats, toilets, and gallies for their new widebody jets, the Wall Street Journal reports. Small firms charged with making such supplies have been slowed as demand has soared. The interrupted production means higher manufacturing costs for both jet makers and long waits for payments from airlines.
Boeing didn’t make its second-quarter earnings projections in part because incomplete interiors kept three of its Dreamliner planes from reaching customers on time last year. Meanwhile, some 8% of Airbus planes have seen delays. “The issue can even escalate to the point that I have to go” to suppliers “and ask, ‘What the hell's going on?'” said an Airbus VP.
