DoD: Firm Supplied Weak Titanium for Aircraft
As many as 7,900 titanium aircraft parts installed in military planes could be made of metal that’s too weak for the job, according to documents from a four-year Defense Department investigation.
Executives with Western Titanium, a metal supplier to Boeing, the Air Force and other government contractors, were indicted Dec. 4 for fraud over metal provided for Air Force F-22s, F-15s and C-17s, Navy F-18s, and NASA’s Kepler spacecraft.
"Several of these parts were placed on active-duty military aircraft" that were or are in active service, according to an affidavit in support of a search of Western’s business records.