17 Boeing 787s Face A Problem

The Boeing 787 is back in the headlines after the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed a mandatory airworthiness directive on the widebody series.

The airworthiness directive requires operators to inspect their Boeing 787 Dreamliners for fatigue cracking, which stems directly from shim gaps and excessive preload forces at critical wing and fuselage splice points.

This is the latest regulatory action, which appears to target variances identified in Boeing’s investigations across the overall manufacturing process and to affect early procurement models, but only a specific subset, as part of ongoing scrutiny and inspections.

FAA Points Towards Shim Gaps On The 787

The directive published in the last fortnight zeroes in on the lower side of the body splice plates. This is common in lower outboard wing skins, where shim gaps exceeded the allowances and high up-pull forces during assembly may have initiated microcracks at the fastener hole.

Boeing’s own probe into this found that the defects posed a risk of weakening the overall primary structure and, as a result, had a consequential impact on the wings’ ability to handle limit loads under specific stresses.

Just a minor: 17 US-registered Boeing 787s are part of what the FAA describes as the initial scope tied to their specific production dates, and this also allows the manufacturer to continue rebuilding efforts.

Fixes could involve repairs, replacements, and more if cracks are detected; however, the FAA is coming into the picture as part of efforts to gain a greater understanding of this and of airworthiness directives common across the industry.

Boeing Has Long Fixed The Problem

Despite the airworthiness directive, Boeing is in full support of the mandated airworthiness directive and confirmed that it had already resolved the root cause in production and that the 787 eamins cleared for normal operation.

Additionally, regarding this specific problem, Boeing issued an Alert Bulletin in August of 2025, instructing operators to inspect their Dreamliner jets for cracks in various components.

The FAA is accepting public comments for 45 days and continues to retain an important grip on Boeing, given this is not the Dreamliner’s first rodeo with concerns around the jet.