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LeadershipWhite House

Air Force One Mechanics Cause $4 Million In Damage Thanks to Contaminated Tools

By
Tessa Berenson
Tessa Berenson
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By
Tessa Berenson
Tessa Berenson
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May 12, 2017, 7:27 AM ET

Mechanics caused $4 million worth of damage repairing a plane in the Air Force One fleet, a federal investigation found, putting the plane at risk of a mid-flight fire.

According to the report, between April 1-10, 2016, “three Boeing mechanics supplied and used contaminated tools, parts, components, a regulator, and an unauthorized cleaning procedure while performing oxygen system leak checks” on one of the VC-25 aircraft in the Air Force One fleet.

There weren’t any injuries resulting from the lack of proper procedure, but not cleaning tools properly before working on the oxygen system can create a fire hazard. The report notes that the cost of remediating the contamination in the oxygen system came to over $4 million, paid for by Boeing (BA).

“Boeing fully understands the level of responsibility that comes from working on the President’s aircraft,” Boeing told CNN in a statement. “We took swift action to self-report the incident to the US Air Force. The oxygen system was remediated by Boeing at no cost to the government.”
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