NORTH CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA — Boeing said the company had been forced to temporarily scale back the production of 787 Dreamliners at its North Charleston plant due to problems in the supply of certain parts and components from its key subcontractor, Spirit AeroSystems.

Despite this setback, the American airframer stated that it would stay on track with its previously-set production goals for next year. Boeing said it would gradually resume production of five aircraft per month.

"As the result of a supply chain challenge, we are adjusting assignments for some of our teammates to ensure everyone has meaningful work," Boeing said in a statement.

The announcement came shortly after United Airlines placed a historic order for the manufacturer's 787 Dreamliners. A substantially greater 787 production rate will be necessary throughout 2023 following United's order.

Also read: United announces largest widebody aircraft order ever placed by a U.S. carrier


Spirit AeroSystems, which is based in Wichita, Kansas, is the world's largest first-tier aerostructures manufacturer. The supplier builds several important pieces of Boeing aircraft, including the fuselage, the nose, and the cockpit of Boeing 787 Dreamliners.

Boeing said it is in talks with Spirit to address the issue.

"We continue to work with our suppliers to resume a steady supply of conforming compliant products to allow us to return to stability across the production system," Boeing said.

The US planemaker also noted that it should not have any significant effect on the scheduled deliveries as it will continue to deliver new aircraft to its customers in 2023 as well without any major delays or setbacks.

However, most of those B787s waiting for delivery were built many months ago before the FAA ordered the planemaker to stop deliveries over quality issues. The inspectors found tiny holes at the fuselage joins and inappropriately placed shims - pieces of material that are used to seal small gaps in the aircraft's structure. Those quality flaws caused a suspension in deliveries for around 19 months.

They were not an immediate safety concern but could potentially lead to premature structural weakness over time.