WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Faulty fuel lines blamed for the grounding of the Marine Corps version of the Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) F-35 fighter jet will likely undergo third-party inspections in the United States, instead of being sent to England, to save time and money, sources familiar with the program said on Tuesday.

The Pentagon on Monday said it found that a fuel line built by Stratoflex, a unit of Parker Hannifin Corp (PH.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz), had been improperly crimped.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The National Transportation Safety Board said on Tuesday it was carrying out a detailed, microscopic investigation of a battery that caught fire on a Boeing Co (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) 787 Dreamliner in Boston this month as the probe dragged into a fourth week.

All 50 Boeing Dreamliners remain grounded around the world, as the U.S., Japanese and French governments continue to investigate that fire and a separate battery-related incident that forced another 787 to make an emergency landing in Japan.

WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Pentagon and industry
investigators have identified a manufacturing problem as the
most likely cause of an engine failure that led to the grounding
of the Marine Corps version of the Lockheed Martin Corp
F-35 fighter jet, a spokesman for engine maker Pratt & Whitney
said on Monday.

The F-35B should be able to resume flights as soon as the
parts supplied by a unit of Parker Hannifin Corp are
replaced, said Matthew Bates, a spokesman for Pratt & Whitney, a
unit of United Technologies Corp.

WASHINGTON, Jan 28 (Reuters) – Pentagon and industry
investigators have pinpointed a manufacturing quality problem as
the most likely cause of an engine failure that led to the
grounding of the Marine Corps version of the Lockheed Martin
Corp F-35 fighter jet, sources familiar with the
investigation told Reuters.

Pentagon officials are expected to finalize the finding and
the proposed fix at a meeting on Monday, said the sources, who
were not authorized to speak publicly. They said the F-35B
should be able to resume flights as soon as the “nonconforming”
parts supplied by a unit of Parker Hannifin Corp are
replaced.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. safety regulators are nowhere near finishing an investigation into a battery fire on the Boeing Co 787 Dreamliner, a top official said on Thursday, raising the prospect of a prolonged grounding for the aircraft.

Deborah Hersman, chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, made clear that investigators have found a series of “symptoms” in the battery damaged in a January 7 fire in Boston, but not the underlying cause of the problem. She also said the agency would be looking at the design of the battery compartment area of the plane and whether the certification standards had been strong enough.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. safety regulators are nowhere near finishing an investigation into a battery fire on the Boeing Co (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research) 787 Dreamliner, a top official said on Thursday, raising the prospect of a prolonged grounding for the plane.

Airlines have cancelled hundreds of flights in the eight days since the plane was grounded, and Boeing has stopped deliveries of newly built jets.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) Chief Executive Marillyn Hewson said the company’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter program was progressing “very well” despite the grounding of the Marine Corps model, and she expected to sign a deal with the Pentagon on sixth and seventh production lots in the first half of 2013.

That would be a marked improvement over the past few years, when Lockheed and government negotiators wound up taking nearly a year to finalize details of production contracts.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – U.S. safety regulators will update their probe into battery fires on Boeing Co’s (BA.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) 787 Dreamliner on Thursday, as key customer United Airlines stood by the jet and said it expects more of them soon.

The 787 has been grounded worldwide since January 16 after a series of fires, including one that caused an emergency landing in Japan. Boeing and its regulators have said they do not know when the plane will fly again.

WASHINGTON, Jan 24 (Reuters) – U.S. safety regulators will
update their probe into battery fires on Boeing Co’s 787
Dreamliner on Thursday, as key customer United Airlines stood by
the jet and said it expects more of them soon.

The 787 has been grounded worldwide since Jan. 16 after a
series of fires, including one that caused an emergency landing
in Japan. Boeing and its regulators have said they do not know
when the plane will fly again.

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) and Raytheon Co (RTN.N: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) warned on Thursday that U.S. defense budget cuts would eat into their sales this year, but they forecast very different effects on their bottom lines.

Lockheed, the Pentagon’s biggest supplier, said it could cut enough costs that earnings would not only grow but also would exceed expectations. Raytheon, on the other hand, said its profit would shrink as the arms maker gets squeezed by the end of high-margin programs and the start of new, low-margin ones.