SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER http://seattlep-i.nwsource.com/business/boeing02.shtml

Damage at Boeing Field stymies delivery of planes to customers

Friday, March 2, 2001

By JAMES WALLACE SEATTLE POST-INTELLIGENCER REPORTER

With its airplane delivery center at Boeing Field closed for what could be up to three weeks because of earthquake damage to the runway, Boeing yesterday was studying options for getting its jetliners to customers.

As a result of the quake, Boeing may not be able to meet its quarterly delivery numbers.

"It may be tight," Boeing spokesman Craig Martin acknowledged last night.

Sixteen Boeing jets are stranded at Boeing Field because of damage to the runway. That represents about half a month of airplane production from the Renton plant.

At least two of those planes have already been turned over to customers and the paperwork signed, Martin said. Boeing Field is the delivery center for 737 and 757 jets manufactured at Boeing's Renton plant, which should reopen today for most workers. The plant remained closed yesterday while engineers assessed damage from Wednesday's quake.

About 8,000 workers build the 737 and 757 single-aisle jets.

The company's commercial headquarters across from Boeing Field also remain closed, as did some of Boeing's other area facilities. Meeting customer commitments is Boeing's top priority -- after assuring the workplace safety of its employees, Martin said.

Boeing's other Puget Sound airplane factory in Everett had only minor damage and reopened yesterday.

But the closure of the airport just south of downtown Seattle remained one of the company's significant problems. Planes built in the Renton plant are flown to the airport -- generally called Boeing Field but owned and operated by King County -- for a couple test flights before they are handed over to the customer. Some planes also get their final paint jobs at the Boeing Field delivery center.

And based on reports on cracks in the airport runways, that facility is apt to be closed to the big commercial jetliners well after the Renton plant is running again.

Martin said the company is studying its options.

Boeing's widebody jets -- the 747, 767 and 777 -- are built in Everett and delivered to customers from Paine Field, adjacent to the plant. And that's an option for the Renton-built jets, too.

But Martin said it has not been decided that the 737s and 757s will be flown to Paine Field for pre-delivery work.

"You could go to a number of locations," he said, including Long Beach, Calif., where Boeing builds the 717.

While the company continued to inspect Renton and some of its other work sites and offices, the company's sprawling Everett plant and facilities in Bellevue and Auburn returned to regular schedules yesterday.

For those who haven't returned to work, the company said employees should call a hot line, 800-899-6431, for work-related information, which is also posted on the company's web site at boeing.com.

In a statement, Boeing said about 20 of its employees were treated for injuries, ranging from bruises to a broken ankle, after Wednesday's earthquake.

The company's stock was down $2.55 a share, closing yesterday at $59.65.

But one analyst said the drop probably reflected overall market concerns rather than anything related to the quake. Analysts have said that orders for new airplanes for both Boeing and rival Airbus could be down by as much as 30 percent this year.

P-I reporter James Wallace can be reached at 206-448-8040 or jameswallace@seattle-pi.com

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 02, 2001

Answers

Bad news for Boeing and Seattle. Good new for me. No more 'red eyes' going over my house for maybe up to 5 weeks. UPS and other cargo companies use Boeing field and still have planes stranded there

-- Martin Thompson (mthom1927@aol.com), March 02, 2001.