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Boeing is close to reaching a deal that would bring Spirit AeroSystems back under its umbrella as the company seeks to stabilize its supply chain in the wake of a tumultuous year, Reuters reports.
The aerospace giant confirmed it was in talks to repurchase its former subsidiary in March, saying at the time that reintegration would improve the safety and quality of its operations. Wichita, Kansas-based Spirit was spun off in 2005 and has been accused of failing to conduct proper quality control at its facilities, which led to a near-disastrous incident earlier this month.
Discussions between Spirit and Arlington, Virginia-based Boeing hit a snag over the supplier’s work for Boeing’s European rival Airbus, which threatened to block any deal that involved Boeing making parts for its new models, according to Reuters.
Reuters, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, reports that Boeing and Airbus have largely divided Spirit’s programs into work that each company will take. A third category of programs could be sold or dealt with on a separate basis. A deal could come within days or weeks.
Talks began after a Boeing 737 Max 9 jet had a door plug blow off in January, which led to waves of investigations and increased scrutiny over Boeing’s operations and safety measures. Spirit had crafted that jet. A whistleblower in May said he was ousted because he too frequently called out quality issues on plane bodies being put together by the company.
An initial National Transportation Safety Board investigation into what happened with the door plug blowout suggested that the workers on the plane in question appeared to have forgotten to replace four key bolts that would have held the piece in place. Crews had been fixing a defect that was allowed to leave Spirit’s facility in Wichita for Boeing’s Renton, Washington factory in the name of keeping up production speed.
On Tuesday, outgoing CEO Dave Calhoun testified before Congress, telling lawmakers that Boeing is taking “comprehensive action” to strengthen safety and quality control. He also emphasized that Boeing has encouraged workers to step forward and speak out if they saw something wrong on the assembly line.
Representatives for Boeing, Spirit AeroSystems, and Airbus did not immediately respond to requests for comment Friday morning.
-Melvin Backman contributed to this story.