But There's No Explanation For Cap In Osprey Fuel Line

Defense officials last week lifted a production ban at a Boeing rotorcraft plant in Ridley Park, PA, days after the lines were shut down after a plastic cap was discovered in the fuel line of a V-22 Osprey.

As ANN reported, federal investigators stepped in when the cap was found during an inspection that began after two dissimilar types of plastic caps couldn't be found at the end of a shift. The discovery of the foreign object mandated notification of officials from the Defense Contract Management Agency, which ordered the line halted the afternoon of November 21.

Eyebrows were raised as this wasn't the first time this year something suspicious happened on the line at Ridley Park. In May, employees discovered severed wiring on one CH-47 Chinook during a quality control inspection, and a second with a "suspicious washer." A unionized assembly-line worker was arrested, and admitted to the apparent sabotage.

Disconcertingly, DCMA officials weren't able to determine why the cap was found in the Osprey. "We may never know exactly how it got there," Boeing spokesman John Williamson told the Philadelphia Inquirer. "It's really impossible to tell just because of where the piece was and where the fuselage was in the manufacturing process."

Vandalism hasn't been ruled out, Williamson added.

FMI: www.boeing.com/ids