Boeing C-17 line may end

[mpenguin1]

The end of Boeing Co.'s C-17 program could be near after an influential study said production of the cargo plane beyond 2008 is not necessary, imperiling nearly 2,100 jobs in Missouri and Illinois.

Christopher Bolkcom, a national defense specialist at the Congressional Research Service, said he had reviewed an unclassified copy of the study, which analyzes the Air Force's mobility needs. A key finding in the study said the C-17's program of record for 180 planes provides sufficient capacity to support the Air Force's air mobility strategy with acceptable risk, Bolkcom said Friday.

The heart of C-17 production is in Long Beach, Calif., where 6,500 workers build a plane that can land on a dirt airstrip in remote Afghanistan. The plane is a living highlight reel on television, where it is often seen hauling humanitarian aid to earthquake and hurricane victims, or tanks and helicopters to Iraq.

http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/bus...2?OpenDocument

[BCTAv8r]

That's something else I'm considering about engineering. They could choose to cancel your project and before you know it your unemployed.

[WindyCityPilot]

That can happen almost anywhere you work. I've seen companies interview and hire people.....then before their start date they told them they no longer need them.

[Mike Lewis]

I don't know why they are not considering buying more C-17s. During Operation Allied Force, it had a reliability rate of around 95% - something that was unheard of in an operation of that magnitude. Compare that with the C-5's reliability of only 58% at that time. It seemed to me the AF would be better off with building more C-17s instead of their effort to modernize their C-5s.

Originally Posted by BCTAv8r

That's something else I'm considering about engineering. They could choose to cancel your project and before you know it your unemployed.

If you are worth your weight, you'll always find another project/company to go to. I was on three cancelled projects, and I was never laid off as a result of it. Don't let that discourage you from engineering. In fact, there are probably very few engineers out there who HAVEN'T been on a cancelled project.

[mpenguin1]

WASHINGTON — The Senate approved a measure Thursday that would keep open the production line for Boeing's C-17 transport plane.

An amendment to the defense-authorization bill, sponsored by Sens. Jim Talent, R-Mo., and Joe Lieberman, D-Conn., would authorize the Air Force to purchase up to 42 new C-17s and create a new structure for the Pentagon to assess the need to build more lift aircraft.

"The Air Force doesn't want to stop production because it isn't very happy with its existing aircraft and it thinks it will need more C-17s, but it can't afford to keep producing them."

[Crosswind]

So it's a money problem then...Jeez it's always about the money isn't it? Thanks for sharing.