NEW YORK — Spirit AeroSystems says it's discussing a possible sale of the company to Boeing.
Spirit and Boeing confirmed in news releases Friday afternoon what had been reported by several media outlets earlier in the day.
Spirit has hired bankers to consider strategic options and held preliminary discussions about a sale back to Boeing, its former owner, The Wall Street Journal reported Friday.
Spirit said in a statement that it's "currently engaged in discussions with Boeing about a possible acquisition of the Company by Boeing. No assurances can be given that a definitive agreement will be entered into, that any transaction will be consummated, or the timing, terms or conditions of any such transaction.
"The Spirit Board of Directors and management team are committed to enhancing shareholder value and regularly review the Company's opportunities to further this objective."
Boeing also issued a news release Friday afternoon. It said: "We have been working closely with Spirit AeroSystems and its leadership to strengthen the quality of the commercial airplanes that we build together. We confirm that our collaboration has resulted in preliminary discussions about making Spirit AeroSystems a part of Boeing again.
"We believe that the reintegration of Boeing and Spirit AeroSystems' manufacturing operations would further strengthen aviation safety, improve quality and serve the interests of our customers, employees, and shareholders."
Spirit also is looking into selling operations in Northern Ireland that make parts for Airbus, Boeing’s European rival, the Journal reported.
Boeing spun off Spirit — its largest supplier — in 2005 as part of a strategy to outsource the supply chain for its commercial planes.
Critics have questioned the strategy as quality problems mounted at Spirit, including fuselage panels that didn't fit together precisely and holes that were improperly drilled. Those and other flaws held up deliveries of Boeing 737s and 787s.
Spirit removed its CEO in October and replaced him with Patrick Shanahan, a former Boeing executive who served as acting defense secretary in the Trump administration.
Scrutiny of Spirit grew even stronger after an emergency door plug that it made blew off an Alaska Airlines 737 Max 9 over Oregon on Jan. 5.
Investigators said the panel had been removed at a Boeing factory to let Spirit workers fix damaged rivets, and bolts that help hold the panel in place were missing after the repair job. It is not clear who removed the bolts and failed to put them back.
Two weeks later, Boeing CEO David Calhoun toured the Spirit factory in Wichita. Calhoun and Shanahan pledged to work together to improve manufacturing quality. Shanahan said Spirit would work with Boeing, regulators and airlines, and he vowed, “We will restore confidence.”
Calhoun has long defended Boeing's outsourcing, but his tone changed in recent weeks. On Jan. 31, as Boeing reported a fourth-quarter loss, Calhoun said that outsourcing probably went too far.
About 70% of Spirit AeroSystems' revenue last year came from work done for Boeing, according to Spirit's latest annual report. That is up from 60% two years earlier.
The company is Wichita's largest employer with about 12,000 workers.
Spirit lost $616 million last year after losing more than $540 million in each of the two previous years. Boeing agreed in October to give more financial help to Spirit. Boeing said it would provide $100 million for Spirit to retool its factory and adjust prices to give the supplier another $455 million over two years.
Boeing has its own manufacturing problems. This week, the Federal Aviation Administration gave the company 90 days to submit a plan to improve quality and to address safety concerns raised by a panel of experts who spent a year studying Boeing.
