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Boeing is definitely in talks to acquire Spirit AeroSystems, a longtime subcontractor that has been the epicenter of a handful of production issues.
The deal wouldn't be all too surprising, since both parties are under a careful eye from both the public and the FAA. Spirit was spun off from Boeing when it began its very McDonnell-Douglas campaign of shaving off and selling its organs in a quest for profitability. Grafting Spirit Aerosystems back into Boeing would allow them to exert improved quality control measures over the supplier, tighten up their chain of logistics, and ensure continuous procedures from start to finish.
Boeing issued a short statement describing the "reintegration of Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems' manufacturing operations would further strengthen aviation safety, improve quality, and serve the interests of our customers, employees and shareholders." Riding along with the rumored acquisition is Spirit's desire to sell off a business arm in Ireland that produces wing structures for Airbus.
The news was good for Spirit AeroSystems stock, which saw a jump of about 15% in the day's trading. That says a bit about how the public sees the firm in relation to Boeing, which saw another 2% decline in the same period - evidently they don't make for a very well-matched couple in terms of desirability.
Spirit was the primary culprit behind some previous brouhahas that arose from the Boeing production line. The subcontractor has been a purveyor of large parts for a range of Boeing aircraft, leading to a bit of a sloppy reputation in recent memory. Spirit is currently in the midst of a civil lawsuit from investors who assert that its continuous QC issues drove down stock values. Backing them up is a 'whistleblower' report from a former quality auditor at the manufacturer. That person was fired in 2023 for what the company said was a failure to conduct inspections under his purview. He contends that he was fired because he was too quality-minded to be a Spirit Aerosystems quality auditor. He believes he was fired for flagging errors he found on the factory floor, which led to subpar products being sent to Boeing.
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