Downfall: The Case Against Boeing.
 

Just finished watching this on Netflix.
An eye-opener for me. A lot of Boeing history that I didn't know.

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And people laugh at me when I tell them I don't fly and won't fly.

But you drive?

worked at Boeing for 20 years. Shim to fit and drifting a hole is common practice.

^^^ They talk about things left in critical places after maintenance on the Netflix docu.
One was a ladder left in the rudder section!

Sounds like an upgrade that adds stiffness! Just like a strut tower brace in an old 911!

FOD ......... the silent killer in the aircraft industry . I did 26 years with Lockheed Martin with my last 8 in Aero . Built F22/F35/C130/C5 in a production control capacity . No matter how much you train/*****/complain/discipline we always were finding FOD .

People's lives depend on a clean well built aircraft . No grey area it all has to be right . People tend to get lazy and that can bite you back hard . I don't miss the stress of that environment .

Fod?

Foreign Object Damage

B
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We called it Foreign Object Debris.
The mindset of those who build planes is/was fundamentally different than that required to build satellites. Planes were/are always expected to return to earth so you can fix them. Satellites are usually one and done as in once it's up there it ain't comin' back for repairs.
It was hard for management to get that thru their heads when They took over Hughes sat's.

Foreign object damage or foreign object debris as others have stated . Basically anything found inside the aircraft that shouldn't be there is considered FOD . It can be metal shavings to tools and everything in between . All FOD is a no no but in our shop any FOD found in fuel tank bladders REALLY got everyone's attention .
DCMA ( government oversight quality ) would really make life miserable ( rightly so ) if FOD was a repeat offender . Just think about how many rivets are in a C130 . Then make sure there are NO SHAVINGS anywhere . Tough work but we were paid well and proudly delivered bird after bird with minimal issues .

iirc, it was FOD which popped a Concorde tire and took out an engine on takeoff.

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FOD is, and always will be a critical factor in the aviation industry.

So the moral of the story is, Don't Buy a McDonnell Douglas satellite?

In my 30yrs as an engineer at Douglas/McDonnell Douglas/Boeing, I had annual FOD training even though I was not involved in the production process. When I needed to visit a line, there were signs everywhere in the factory and on the aircraft warning about FOD. You would have to be blind not to see them.

Same here. Last flight was may 2012. Wife hates me now cause I wont go anywhere

Watching film now

True. Totally irrational fear. For me, it’s several very bad flights and paranoia from too many variables out of my control and probably being close to the WTC on 9/11

Still, no doubt it’s safe. If I could fly the plane, I would feel a lot better about flying

Well, at least you're honest about it. Gotta be little uncomfortable around vacation time?
I've pulled hundreds of broken and dead people from cars and fortunately for me, hasn't pushed me to that level of anxiety.
We flew into ERW in the first hours after it opened post 9/11 and never looked back. Of course, I'm not that bright.

I commuted for years in NYC on a motorcycle in a t-shirt and slip on vans sneakers. I smoked 2 packs a day for 30 something years…..so…….it has nothing to do with rational thought

It’s a fear I really don’t want to get over I guess

similar to my -no swimming in the ocean- rule. Sharks.

This film is only bound to reinforce my paranoia…so, staycations will continue for the foreseeable future Hahah