Spotlight: Suit Accuses Northrop of Using Faulty Parts

Northrop Grumman Corp. allegedly installed faulty rivets and fasteners and as many as 8,000 improperly treated aluminum parts on the U.S. Air Force’s top ground surveillance plane, according to a whistle-blower’s lawsuit. The suit, joined in part by the Justice Department, accuses Los Angeles-based Northrop of using improperly tested parts in the Joint Stars, or Joint Surveillance Target Attack Radar System. A Northrop spokesman would not immediately comment on the suit.