Originally Posted by
rickair7777
New spherical bearings should work fine, for a very long time. If they replace or inspect the bearings I'd ferry them... empty, minimum fuel, minimum reduced thrust.
That's not saying I'd want to operate them in regular service, without a lot of thorough analysis, and redesigned bearings installed.
There is no way that UPS replaces the bearings with the new part. Replacing both the lugs and the bearings on everything only to scrap them would be really stupid. They will be torn apart where they are or sold off and let someone else pay for the fix. Mechanically, It seems as if Boeing and the FAA already know what to do to get the MD11 flying if companies choose to in the future.