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By Howard Hardee and Scott Hamilton
Aug. 24, 2026, © Leeham News: Cutting down on traveled work at Spirit AeroSystems’s former facility in Wichita, Kansas is critical for Boeing’s efforts to reintegrate Spirit and boost 737 Max production rates.
The airframer maintains that it has made progress since closing its acquisition of Spirit in December 2025, and some Wichita workers tell Leeham News and Analysis (LNA) that the amount of traveled work occurring on the 737 line is effectively being reduced.
But there are indications that such work remains a challenge for 737 fuselage production line at the former Spirit plant. Workers on the line observed that traveled work still occurs on a large scale, often disrupting workflows.
Some employees described positive safety culture changes and improved communication from management at the Wichita facility. All acknowledged that reintegrating Spirit into Boeing’s portfolio remains a work in progress.
Whether the Wichita facility is capable of supporting advanced 737 production rates is a crucial question for Boeing. Spirit AeroSystems/LinkedIn
Boeing leadership says the plan to reduce the amount of traveled work—or work performed at a different station on the production line than the one assigned—is showing early results. Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA) is working to boost monthly single-aisle production rates and turn around the broader company’s ailing finances.
Last month, Ihssane Mounir, Boeing’s senior vice president of supply chain and fabrication, told reporters that fuselages arriving by rail at Boeing’s 737 final assembly line in Renton, Washington require less rework compared with fuselages delivered by the pre-acquisition Spirit facility. “Rework” describes work that must be corrected because it does not meet specifications; it can be related to but is distinct from traveled work.
“When you look at again going back to Wichita, or Spirit, from the moment we started this journey with them until today, we’re looking at approximately 30-40% less rework on the 737 fuselage as it comes in here,” he said.
Mounir added that workers at the Spirit facility “know what they’re doing” and “just need the tools and the support.”
“Is it trouble-free? Absolutely not,” he said. “There’s a lot of things that we need to work on together. There are a lot of improvements we need to work on together. We’re doing that, but they’re bringing a lot of value to the table.”
