The FBI said late last night that it was investigating alleged sabotage of passenger planes at a Boeing assembly plant near Seattle.
Boeing earlier said it had stepped up security at its Renton assembly plant southeast of Seattle after discovering as many as 10 incidents of suspicious wire damage to 737 planes in final assembly.
FBI special agent Ray Lauer told AFP the investigation had been launched into whether criminal activity had taken place.
"We have an investigation that we opened," he said. He said authorities were looking into whether there was "criminal activity or possibly an accident that occurred during the manufacturing of the airplane."
Boeing discovered seven incidents of wire damage "not common in the normal course of manufacturing" in various parts of planes being assembled at its plant in Renton, company spokeswoman Sandy Anger told AFP.
"That prompted the company to look back at several earlier incidents, which are now considered suspicious," Anger said. There are no suspects.
The spokesman said the damage was found during routine testing.
"Airplanes go though rigorous testing by Boeing, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and the airlines before they're delivered," she said. "This proves our quality system works."
AFP