*

Spirit investigation covers select parts for multiple

plane

programs since 2010

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No potential safety concerns identified, sources say

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Spirit Aero to automate CMM report processes within 90

days

By Allison Lampert

Sept 23 (Reuters) - U.S. supplier Spirit AeroSystems ( SPR )

is investigating years of record-keeping of parts for

multiple plane programs, after discovering cases of missing and

duplicate paperwork, two industry sources told Reuters.

The Wichita, Kansas-based supplier has checked paperwork and

hundreds of thousands of parts dating to 2010, the earliest date

for its records, after discovering anomalies last month in

reports from a machine that measures parts, one of the sources

said.

At this time, Spirit's investigation has not identified any

potential safety concerns with the affected parts, said the two

sources familiar with the matter, who spoke on condition of

anonymity.

Spirit Aero spokesperson Joe Buccino confirmed Spirit has

notified affected customers and is investigating internally.

The missing records accounted for 4% of all records since

2010 on parts measured by a coordinate measuring machine (CMM),

which is used to precisely measure parts such as brackets,

frames, and beams.

Buccino said in a statement that the company "has discovered

a relatively small number of parts delivered where we are unable

to produce valid coordinate measuring machine reports, spanning

several customer programs since 2010."

The sources provided supplementary details, with one adding

that the company is expected to tell customers if parts might

need additional inspections or replacement.

Paper trails are critical in aviation. Regulators insist on

clear documentation for even minor production changes to assure

planes are safe. Missing, duplicate or false paperwork can lead

to costly, labor-intensive investigations for manufacturers and

suppliers.

Spirit produces aircraft parts for commercial and defense

companies including planemaker Airbus and Boeing ( BA )

, which is set to acquire the company for $4.7 billion.

Boeing ( BA ) declined comment while Airbus was not immediately

available for comment.

The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration said its

regulations require manufacturers to maintain records for

products they produce to ensure they comply with safety

standards. The FAA reviews these records as part of safety

oversight.

One Spirit customer said they were not concerned because the

affected parts were built into a system that has backup measures

or redundancies.

The issue was first flagged to Spirit by an employee who

detected some anomalies in a few CMM reports, which sparked a

broader investigation by Spirit that turned up missing and

duplicate reports, one of the sources said. What caused the

issue is not clear.

Spirit is moving to automate certain steps to produce and

store CMM reports to eliminate any improper actions by human

operators. Spirit aims to have this solution in place in the

next 90 days, the source said.