DoD: Firm supplied weak titanium for aircraft

[unhappycamper]

DoD: Firm supplied weak titanium for aircraft
By Sam LaGrone - Staff writer
Posted : Tuesday Dec 23, 2008 18:41:09 EST

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.

“These parts include flight-safety-critical parts, including, but not limited to, the engine mounts used on the F-15 aircraft,” according to the affidavit, filed by Defense Department investigators in April.

The federal court of California’s southern district charged four executives of Western Titanium, based in San Diego, with eight counts of fraud and conspiracy for allegedly falsifying the quality certificates of titanium supplied to customers. The Western executives charged were owner and chief executive Daniel Schroeder, former vice president of sales John Cotner, current vice president of sales Brian Misak and quality assurance manager Cheem Ang.


Rest of article at: http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/12/airforce_titanium_122308/%2e