AEROSPACE

McDonnell Douglas May Submit C-17 Claims: McDonnell Douglas is preparing to submit a claim of more than $1 billion on its C-17 cargo jet program to the Air Force for delays and disruption caused by the service, defense industry sources said. The massive claim, reported by the Wall Street Journal on Wednesday, would recoup virtually all of the estimated losses the firm will incur in developing the jet and building the first six aircraft. In the first three quarters of 1992, McDonnell Douglas wrote off $383 million in pretax charges for the C-17 program. McDonnell has already submitted more than $300 million in claims, which the Air Force has rejected or is still considering.