Another 787 Fire this time at LHR

[Evan]

It was identified early in the investigation that ELT battery wires, crossed and trapped under the battery compartment cover-plate...

Shoddy outsourcing no doubt. I'm guessing this wasn't done in Seattle.

[elaw]

The LHR fire fighting crew had difficulty in finding and fighting this fire...

You make a fair point, and it's certainly sensible to consider accessibility when designing aircraft systems for a variety of reasons.

But it's not reasonable to expect that every small item in an aircraft that could start a fire can be located in 30 seconds. This just as well could have been an electronic device in someone's luggage, buried under 50 other pieces of luggage in the middle of a cargo hold.

[ATLcrew]

Shoddy outsourcing no doubt. I'm guessing this wasn't done in Seattle.

I don't know if this was an outsourced job or not, but shoddy work can be done in Seattle just as easily, don't you worry. Or worry a lot, I dunno.

[Evan]

I don't know if this was an outsourced job or not, but shoddy work can be done in Seattle just as easily, don't you worry. Or worry a lot, I dunno.

I assume you haven't seen the journalism on Boeing's outsourcing standards. Cramming some crossed wired into a battery compartment? That doesn't sound like Seattle-style workmanship.

[elaw]

Are you honestly saying that workers in Seattle are incapable of making mistakes?

Granted, my opinion and probably yours too is that workers in a certain other country whose name begins with "C" and ends with "hina" have a reputation for making mistakes more frequently than workers in the USA (depending on the context and who you ask).

But that does not mean US workers or workers anywhere else have a mistake rate of zero.

[guamainiac]

Many out-sourced jobs involve the use of a mechanic or technician who is not certified; what few articles I have seen on this indicate that they have "oversight" by a certified individual.

Even my military certs would not have passed muster with the requirements.

Most of the airlines did their maintenance and repair in Kansas in the 60's and 70's and those were a proud lot of mechanics.

[ATLcrew]

I assume you haven't seen the journalism on Boeing's outsourcing standards. Cramming some crossed wired into a battery compartment? That doesn't sound like Seattle-style workmanship.

Do you blindly believe all "journalism" or are you just naïve? I don't see a third option here.

[Evan]

Do you blindly believe all "journalism" or are you just naïve? I don't see a third option here.

Well, if you don't see it, then there's nothing to see here, right?

Of course mistakes are made everywhere, but this doesn't sound like a mistake. It sounds like hasty, aloof workmanship. Think about it: crossed wiring, with the cover jammed on top of it. Is that a mistake, or is that rushed carelessness? Does the long-standing tradition of pride-of-workmanship at Puget Sound beget such carelessness? It seems unlikely to me.

There has been some reputable reporting on how Boeing outsourced 70% of the 787 production chain and enlisted some inexperienced labor in its Charleston, South Carolina assembly plant. In bringing the 787 to market, Boeing outsourced to 50 companies in 11 countries. The Seattle TImes reported that machinists at the 787 assembly plant in Everett, Washington, reported receiving fuselages with wiring and hydraulic lines missing. Budget and scheduling overruns undoubtedly exerted pressure along a vast, three-tiered supply chain. I'm guessing the ELT wiring was done outside of Boeing's facilities, perhaps across the world, but who knows...

There's quite a story here if you want to open your eyes to it. I just hope it ends with these not-fatal incidents.