Another thing about compsites. The equipment and time needed to examine composites for signs of fatigue is so expensive and takes so long, that many airlines cannot afford to do it as well as they should.

A hard time? I doubt AA is ever going to by Airbuses again! And I'm glad. Airlines like American Airlines, US Airways, and United Airlines should by American products, instead of European ones! Also, Airbus's aircraft (I've heard) are offered at next to nothing prices, how can a company afford to do that, without cutting corners or going bankrupt? I mean, Boeings aircraft are a little more expensive, but how many properly mantianed Boeings have fallen apart?

KLM vowed openly never to buy Airbuddies again after they nearly lost 2 A310s due to stability problems (which led to the type leaving the fleet after only 5 years out of a planned 20 or so).Yet now they've (without doubt on orders from Paris) ordered A330s...

I agree. However, Airbus is giving Boeing a run for their money, regardless of their pricing practices. The success of Boeing may largely count on the success of the 7E7 and their hunch that there won't be high demand for large aircraft such as the A380. A few U.S. carriers are starting to look beyond "patriotic purchasing" and accepting Airbuses in their fleet, such as Northwest, America West, and Jet Blue. I feel more confident about the Boeing products, especially after reading about pieces falling off of Airbuses in flight - such as stabilizers, flap canoes, and engine cowls. French design doesn't get any salvation when one of their terminals collapses either. Are engineering classes that sketchy over there?

AA587, no. TWA800, yes.

TWA800, no.Unless you believe there's some BIG BAD US government conspiracy around it, and let's not go that way again shall we?

I support the war in Iraq. OTOH, WMD are not evident. That does not mean that one is directly dependant on the other.Terrorism on 587? Who knows. This I DO know. I am a 15 year Air Traffic Controller. I am a pilot. I know I've seen nothing which "bottles the egg" for me with 587. NTSB, nothing...nope. I've participated in NTSB investigations. Policy is no comments until complete. 587 was commented as "...not related to terrorism" withing minutes.The sentence above is indisputable fact.Cheers,bt

Glad to hear you support the war. I hope it turns out to be a good thing. I wish all of the soldiers a safe return and will never forget those that lost their lives fighting for their country. This goes for all wars past and present.As far as 587 is concerned, I'm not sure why it was classified as non-terrorist related so fast. The only thing I can think of is the fact it was New York and a month after 9/11. They didn't want people to panic? I don't know. This administration has made some mistakes, and that might have been one of them.