The Federal Aviation Administration said it would investigate allegations that titanium had entered the supply chain via falsified documents.

Boeing and Airbus, the two biggest commercial airline makers, may have used titanium sold using fake documents, according to evidence from a supplier that has triggered a Federal Aviation Administration investigation.

The FAA said in a statement to NBC News on Friday morning it would look into allegations from Spirit Aerosystems that the two aviation giants used titanium in their planes that came with paperwork verifying its authenticity that could have been falsified.

The news adds to a troubled period for Boeing, which is the subject of ongoing federal investigations for alleged safety problems. But the news also brings its fierce rival, France-headquartered Airbus, into the wider scrutiny the aviation industry is facing.

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[–] 99 points 2 years ago* (3 children)

At this point, if you told me that the Made in America logo on all the planes can be scratched off and it says Made in Myanmar underneath, I would absolutely not be surprised.

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  • [–] 28 points 2 years ago* (2 children)

    This one got at least Airbus and Spirit as well and it's quite possible that it's related to the CFM / AOG Technics debacle out of the UK last year.

    https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/engine-maker-cfm-says-up-96-planes-affected-by-fake-parts-probe-2023-09-20/

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  • [–] 17 points 2 years ago (2 children)

    CFM56 engines power the previous generation of Boeing 737s and about half the previous generation of Airbus A320s. These are gradually being upgraded but thousands remain in service.

    The CFM56 is also used on Boeing P-8 maritime patrol planes sold to the United States and Britain, while the GE-built CF6 powers Boeing KC-767A tankers sold to Italy and Japan.

    If you're right that's a big pile of doo-doo that's gonna hit Boeing hard.

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  • [–] 5 points 2 years ago* (last edited 2 years ago)

    I don't think that it's Myanmar here. Maybe China.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Titanium_production_by_country

    For titanium processing, this has global production in 2021 of 210,000 metric tons.

    1. China: 120,000
    2. Japan: 35,000
    3. Russia: 27,000
    4. Kazakhstan: 16,000
    5. Ukraine: 5,400
    6. Saudi Arabia: 3,700
    7. India: 250

    For ore reserves:

    https://www.statista.com/statistics/1233845/reserves-titanium-minerals-worldwide-by-country/

    1. China
    2. Australia
    3. India
    4. Canada
    5. Brazil
    6. Norway
    7. South Africa
    8. Mozambique
    9. Madagascar
    10. Ukraine
    11. United States

    EDIT: Yeah, apparently it was China:

    https://www.msn.com/en-my/news/other/boeing-and-airbus-planes-constructed-with-fake-chinese-titanium/ar-BB1ofaLP

    Boeing and Airbus planes constructed with 'fake' Chinese titanium

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