Europe aviation agency advises suspending use of Kobe Steel products

Kobe Steel’s admissions that its supply chains have been tainted, affecting about 500 companies across the world, has sent its shares into free fall. (Reuters)

PARIS: Europe’s aviation regulator has advised aircraft manufacturers to suspend using parts from Kobe Steel until their legitimacy can be proved, following revelations about data cheating at the Japanese company.
The move by the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is another headache for Kobe Steel, which has shocked aircraft, auto, train and other industries with its revelations that it has been shipping some products to customers with falsified data on strength and durability.
“Where alternative suppliers are available, it is recommended to suspend use of Kobe Steel products until the legitimacy of the affected parts can be determined,” EASA said in a Safety Information Bulletin (SIB) dated Oct. 17.
The EASA said the concern was not serious enough at this stage to warrant an airworthiness directive setting out compulsory measures.
A Kobe Steel spokesman declined to comment on the EASA statement.
The admissions that Kobe Steel’s supply chains have been tainted, affecting about 500 companies across the world, has sent its shares into free fall. The scandal puts another stain on Japan’s manufacturing prowess after similar cases including automakers Mitsubishi Motors Corp. and Nissan Motor Co. .
The EASA bulletin covers aircraft, engines and propellers using Kobe Steel materials or components.
“All organizations that may have specified or used Kobe Steel products should do a thorough review of their supply chains in order to identify if, and when, Kobe Steel products have been used in their product designs and fabrications,” the SIB says.
Because the period of the data tampering has not been ascertained, the focus should be on “current production,” the agency says.
“At this time, the safety concern described in this SIB is not considered to be an unsafe condition that would warrant Airworthiness Directive action,” it said.
The world’s two largest planemakers, Airbus and Boeing, have already said they are conducting such a review.