The decision comes after some customers asked for later and others for earlier delivery dates of the 787 to meet their business needs, the general manager of the airplane program, Scott Fancher, said during a call with reporters.
On what he called a separate issue involving the 787, Fancher said the company was inspecting the company's test fleet of 787s after identifying a problem affecting the horizontal tail. He said inspection teams were also examining all 25 horizontal tails the plane maker currently has in the factory.
'When we find workmanship issues like this it's always regrettable but this one is very manageable,' Fancher said.
He said that the reshuffle of the delivery schedule would affect some aspects of production, leading to 'minor adjustments to the assembly flow.' This could include giving suppliers more time to improve assembly, quality and productivity, he said.
'We're not going to get into the specifics of how we've redistributed the flow but we will be adjusting delivery dates,' Fancher said.
Boeing shares gained 2 percent to close at $68.77 on the New York Stock Exchange.
(Reporting by Karen Jacobs; Editing by Gary Hill) Keywords: BOEING/ (karen.jacobs@thomsonreuters.com; + 1 404 493 3656; Reuters Messaging: karen.jacobs.reuters.com@reuters.net) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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