How about if you have a plane on a train? Now that would be dangerous. Looks like a bad day but I'm guessing this sort of thing is insured for and the biggest impact would be production delays. The headline seems much less dramatic than the pics of major components jumbled into the river. Anybody able to recognize what sort of fuselage that is? Train carrying parts to Boeing derails in Montana | KING5.com Seattle Image Unavailable, Please Login
Montana Rail Link says less then 35 MPH...but then everyone says that they were traveling below the speed limit. On the other hand, the trackage in some spots ain't too great.
You might be surprised how much of these body sections could be salvaged. 'G' loadings and twisting torque (or lack there of) of the rail cars will be the determining factors.
The only complete fuselage shipped by rail is the 737. That train had about 3 days of production on it. ( 6 bodies)
Report: At least four derailed 737 fuselages scrapped | Business & Technology | The Seattle Times Report: At least four derailed 737 fuselages scrapped Four of the six 737 fuselages caught in a Montana train derailment in early July have now been dismantled. By Brandon Brown Four of the six 737 fuselages caught in a Montana train derailment in early July have now been dismantled, according to a report in The Missoulian newspaper Thursday. Boeing declined Friday to provide an update on the state of the six fuselages. A spokesman said the company is still investigating and has not yet decided the fate of the fuselages. The newspaper showed a photo of compacted cubes of green and white fuselage metal stacked in front of what it described as an intact jet body that awaits the same fate. A total of six 737 fuselages came off the train when it derailed July 3 near Alberton, Mont. Three went down the riverbank towards the Clark Fork River, with two landing in the water. One fuselage near the tracks was seen to be broken in two. They were being shipped from Spirit AeroSystems, which builds the fuselages in Wichita, to the Renton plant that assembles 737s at a rate of 42 a month. The Missoulian reported Thursday that a crew from Pacific Steel and Recycling in Missoula, Mont. worked to dismantle what was left of the six blue-green Boeing 737 bodies. Boeing and Pacific Steel and Recycling declined to confirm the Missoulians report. The newspaper reported that crews began taking apart fuselages on Monday, and as of Thursday only two were left. The cause of the derailment is still under investigation.
