Boeing says unaware of further Dreamliner delay
FRANKFURT (Reuters) - Boeing (BA.N) said on Sunday the Federal Aviation Administration has not informed the company of a certification delay of its Dreamliner jet after a report in German magazine Focus that the project could be pushed back by another three to six months.
Focus, which said it obtained the information from within the regulatory body, reported that the first orders will now be delivered at the end of 2009 or the start of 2010.
The German magazine said the reason for the delay was a delay in certification by the FAA.
In response, Boeing spokeswoman Yvonne Leach said: "The FAA has been overseeing our certification effort every step of the way and this is not our understanding."
An FAA official was not immediately aware of any additional Dreamliner delay. "We continue to work with Boeing on certification of the aircraft," said Laura Brown, a spokeswoman for the agency.
Earlier this month, Boeing delayed its 787 Dreamliner for the third time, pushing the program about 15 months behind schedule, as it makes slow progress on assembling the revolutionary carbon-composite plane and continues to grapple with underperforming suppliers.
When it announced the delay earlier this month, Boeing said the first 787 delivery, to Japan's All Nippon Airways Co (9202.T) would now take place in the third quarter of 2009. Its previous target was early 2009. The first 787 delivery was originally planned for May 2008.
(Reporting by Rajiv Sekhri; Editing by Jan Paschal)
