Cargo Door Explosion Ends Tests on Boeing 777X, Reuters Says

(Bloomberg) -- Boeing Co. suspended testing of its 777X aircraft Saturday after a cargo door failed in a ground stress test, Reuters reported, citing a statement from a company spokesman.

“During final load testing on the 777X static test airplane, the team encountered an issue that required suspension of the test,” Reuters quoted the spokesman as saying.

The setback occurred on Friday, according to the Seattle Times, when the airplane’s cargo doors exploded outward during a high-pressure stress test. It happened during the final test that must be passed as part of the plane’s certification by the Federal Aviation Administration, the newspaper said.

Boeing previously said it would push back the 777X’s first flight to 2020 and deliveries would be delayed amid problems with its General Electric Co.-made turbines.

The company is under heavy scrutiny for the 737 Max, grounded in April after two crashes killed 346 people. No date is set for the plane’s return to service.

Boeing didn’t respond to phone calls and an email seeking comment.

To contact the reporters on this story: Melodie Warner in New York at mwarner19@bloomberg.net;Maria Jose Valero in New York at mvalero3@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Sebastian Tong at stong41@bloomberg.net, Virginia Van Natta, Ian Fisher

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