Here is another in our occasional stream of random thoughts.

Bill Virgin and Manufacturing Alert

Bill Virgin, a former columnist with The Seattle PI, was zapped when the print edition shut down and it became a web-only publication. He’s launched his own newsletter, Manufacturing Alert, which covers a variety of industries and issues in Washington State. The modestly-priced subscription-only newsletter may be found here. His June 22 issue notes there are now at least five aerospace groups in Washington dedicated to keeping Boeing here and encouraging aerospace in the state. These are the following groups (with our additional comment describing the mission of each):

Here’s an item we wrote last week for for Commercial Aviation Online:

Boeing Capital Corp. (BCC) isn’t worried about global customer funding availability in 2010, but a top official also says it’s too soon to be sanguine.

Kostya Zolotusky, managing director, said that at the mid-year point today, BCC has “better visibility” for 2010 but that the tight credit market means deals that are normally arranged six months in advance now get arranged in shorter periods.

This BBC story is a good one on the first French analysis of the crash of Air France 447. Most surprising is that the investigators believe the A330-200 was intact when it hit the water in what sounds like a more-or-less level position, on its belly. Earlier reports suggested the plane broke apart in the air.

Here is a piece we did for Commercial Aviation Online:

The debate continues whether production rates on the Airbus A320 and Boeing 737 families should be reduced.

Both manufacturers are in a tug-of-war with their supply chain over rates should be reduced in 2010 and aerospace analysts seem ignored by the Big Two airframers.

Update, 9:20 AM: Flightblogger just posted this: Boeing to buy Vought, Line 2 to go there. This is step one in the allusion below to big news coming out of Boeing that affects Puget Sound.

Original Post:

ANA and the 787

All Nippon Airways, launch customer of the much-delayed Boeing 787, upped its orders from 50 to 55. We can’t help but wonder if it’s going to pay anything at all for these five airplanes or whether these will be free for compensation.

Big news out of Boeing coming?

Here in the Puget Sound we are hearing a lot of buzz that there will be big news out of Boeing’s HQ in Chicago as early as Friday that will be of more than passing interest here. We’ve had three sources on this one.