Boeing

The National Labor Relations Board accused Boeing earlier this year of illegally retaliating against unionized workers by expanding its facilities in a largely nonunion state, South Carolina. Republicans joined much of corporate America in denouncing the board's complaint, calling it a barely disguised attack on state "right to work" laws that make it harder for unions to organize. The questions raised by the board are legitimate ones. The problem is the remedy it has proposed, which would have the perverse effect of confining Boeing's growth to its home region.

After years of downsizing in Southern California, Boeing Co. said it will shift at least 300 engineering jobs on commercial aircraft to its longtime facility in Long Beach. During the next six to nine months, company employees will relocate from the Puget Sound region in Washington to the complex. The facility is next to Long Beach Airport and work done there includes assembly of the C-17 cargo jet for the Air Force. Boeing doubled down on Southern California by announcing Friday that it would establish a new engineering design center for commercial aircraft.

Boeing Co. announced plans to close its long-standing facility in Wichita, Kan., where the company works on B-52 Stratofortress bombers and aerial refueling tankers. The company's historic facility in Wichita has played a large role in city's claim to be the Air Capital of the World. During World War II, the Boeing complex churned out B-29 Superfortress bombers and later the larger B-52s. More than 2,160 people are employed at the facility. Boeing said work will gradually be scaled down before it is officially closed by the end of next year.

The first Boeing Co. 787 Dreamliner to fly under the United Airlines name since a mass grounding ordered by the government earlier this year has landed at Chicago. On board the high-tech jet, which departed from Houston at 11 a.m. local time on Monday: Boeing Chief Executive W. James McNerney Jr. and Jeff Smisek, chief executive of United Continental Holdings Inc. The voyage, dubbed United Flight 1, holds deep symbolic weight for Boeing and United, which is the only American carrier to fly the 787. The Dreamliner is emerging from months of tinkering and testing after the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration on Jan. 16 ordered all of the planes parked due to concerns about its lithium-ion battery system.

Boeing Co. has discovered a flaw in fuselage sections that may affect 55 of its new 787 Dreamliner jets and slow some deliveries, James Albaugh , Boeing's chief executive officer of commercial airplanes, said Wednesday. The Dreamliner is an all-new commercial jet that is largely made of lightweight carbon composites rather than sheets of aluminum. The plane made its first passenger flight with All Nippon Airways in October , but it was more than three years late because of design problems and supplier issues.

A World Trade Organization panel's finding that the European aviation company Airbus had benefited from years of unfair subsidies is, on its surface, a victory for Boeing and the United States in their six-year quest to force Airbus to compete on a level playing field. Yet it also lays the groundwork for an important precedent that could ultimately help both firms in future disputes against new state-subsidized competitors. The trade body focused on the support that Airbus has received from European governments to help develop and launch virtually all of its large civilian airplane models.

SEATTLE -- The crowd of workers and dignitaries lining Paine Field today held their breath as the Boeing 787 Dreamliner roared down the runway, lifted its nose into the air and then flew north with two chase planes trailing along the horizon and then into a bank of clouds. For the first time, a passenger jetliner with a body and wings made of super-hardened plastics took wing, a milestone that promises to usher in a new era in aviation. The plane was scheduled to circle over the Puget Sound for four or so hours, as Michael Carriker and co-pilot Randall Neville test whether the 787's state-of-the-art wing and electronics systems perform as designed.

On a rainy and blustery day at Boeing Co.'s facilities in Everett, Wash., the aerospace giant formally delivered the world's first passenger-ready 787 Dreamliner to Japanese carrier All Nippon Airways Co. Standing shoulder to shoulder, a crowd of about 500 employees, local politicians and aviation industry insiders gathered on a wet tarmac to see Boeing hand over the ceremonial key for the new aircraft to All Nippon. Depending on how individual airlines configure the new planes, they hold the prospect of being faster, more fuel-efficient and having more legroom and overhead space for baggage.

The National Labor Relations Board dropped its much-disparaged action against Boeing Co. on Friday, a move praised by Republicans as overdue but one that deprives the GOP of one of its most reliable talking points in its criticism of the Obama administration. The NLRB filed a complaint against Boeing in March accusing the aerospace company of establishing a nonunion production line in South Carolina in retaliation against union workers in Washington state for past strikes. The machinists union entered into a new four-year contract extension with Boeing earlier this week and, as part of the deal, agreed to withdraw its unfair labor practices charge against the company.

The Federal Aviation Administration has cleared the way for the new Boeing 787 to take its first commercial flight. Both the FAA and European regulators certified the plane for flight Friday. Boeing Co. completed flight tests on the 787 this month. Boeing plans to deliver the first 787 to Japan's All Nippon Airways in September. The airline plans to fly it for the first time as a charter on Oct. 26 and begin regular service Nov. 1. Because of various production problems, delivery is about three years late.

After two incidents in which engines shut down in mid-flight, Boeing Co. and General Electric Co. have warned 10 airlines of a possible mechanical problem with 777 passenger jets. The companies have traced the problem to a faulty part in the transfer gearbox that causes an automatic shutdown in the 777's GE-made engines. There are 26 airplanes in service with the engines and another 14 were in production at Boeing's facilities in Everett, Wash. The problem is due to a bad batch of parts made from September 2012 to March 2013 by GE supplier Avio of Italy.

Boeing Co. is working to regain confidence in its beleaguered 787 Dreamliner jet by giving people with safety concerns a chance to participate in a live video chat with the plane's chief product engineer. Around the world, all 787s had been grounded from Jan. 16 until late last month because of safety concerns with the plane's lithium-ion battery system. Now the Chicago company is working to regain the trust of the flying public. Boeing is hosting the live chat Thursday at 12:30 p.m. PDT on its website with Mike Sinnett, 787 vice president and chief project engineer, and Capt.

After months of headaches brought on by its 787 Dreamliner jet, Boeing Co. is now back on track and even speeding the production rate of the new airliner. The aerospace giant said it has increased the production rate of seven airplanes per month at its Everett, Wash., factory. The program is set to reach 10 per month by year-end. It's good news for the beleaguered 787 program. Around the world, all 787s had been grounded from Jan. 16 until late last month because of safety concerns with the plane's lithium-ion battery system.

Boeing Co., despite its flagship airliner being clipped by federal regulators, is still one of Wall Street's highfliers. The Chicago company reported that first-quarter profit surged 20% from the year-ago period, handily beating analysts' projections. Investors have also been snapping up Boeing's stock, sending shares up 20% this year to $90.83 on Wednesday. And perhaps most important, Boeing is preparing to restart deliveries next week of its troubled 787 Dreamliner for the first time in three months.

The National Transportation Safety Board began a two-day investigative hearing in Washington into a fire that broke out on Boeing Co.'s 787 Dreamliner passenger jet because of overheating in its lithium-ion battery systems. The NTSB still hasn't found a root cause of the fire that occurred Jan. 7 at Boston's Logan International Airport. Ahead of the hearing Tuesday, the board issued hundreds of pages of documents that show five years of history in the development and design approval of the battery system.

The Federal Aviation Administration approved Boeing Co.'s proposed fix for the lithium-ion battery systems on its 787 passenger jets, which have been grounded since January. The FAA said it will require airlines flying 787s to install containment and venting systems for the batteries. The agency also will instruct carriers to replace the batteries and their chargers with modified components. FULL COVERAGE: Boeing's troubled Dreamliner To make sure the work gets done, the FAA has teams of inspectors on-site at the modification spots.

U.S. aviation regulators proposed to fine Boeing Co. $13.6 million for delays in telling airlines how to install devices on 383 aircraft to prevent fuel-tank explosions. Boeing was given a Dec. 27, 2010 deadline to submit instructions on how to add the systems in its U.S.-registered 747 jumbo jets and 757 single-aisle planes, according an e- mailed statement today by the Federal Aviation Administration. The Chicago-based company missed the deadline for 747s by 301 days, and was 406 days late for 757s, according to the FAA release.

Despite Boeing's strenuous efforts to reduce the 787 Dreamliner's weight, the plane weighed more than expected when it first rolled out two years ago. Days before the plane's maiden flight last week, Boeing published a document for airlines that suggests to some weight-watching industry analysts that the 787 still exceeds its original target weight by a few tons. Airlines have ordered 840 of the pioneering composite-plastic planes based on Boeing's projections for its range, payload and fuel efficiency -- all reduced by added weight.

The Federal Aviation Administration approved Boeing Co.'s proposed fix for the lithium-ion battery systems on its 787 Dreamliner passenger jets, which have been grounded since January, clearing the way for a return to flight. The FAA said it will require airlines flying 787s to install containment and venting systems for the batteries. The agency will also instruct carriers to replace the batteries and their chargers with modified components. Boeing has delivered 50 787s to eight airlines worldwide, including United Airlines, the only U.S. carrier that has 787s in its fleet.