The month-long strike by Boeing Co's aircraft workers is starting to spoil airlines' expansion plans and eat into the profits of parts suppliers and metals makers around the world.

The strike has been pushed out of the headlines by the global financial crisis, but its effects are slowly gathering force and may cause serious disruptions if no resolution is reached by the end of the year, which some analysts fear.

"With both sides firmly holding to their original positions, we remain pessimistic that a negotiated solution can be found in the near term," Goldman Sachs analyst Richard Safran said in a research note this week. "There is risk that the strike lasts into December."

The 27,000 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) stopped production at Boeing's plane factories in the Seattle area when they walked out on September 6 after rejecting the company's contract offer.

Both sides have agreed to return to the bargaining table with federal mediators, but no dates for talks have been set.

In the meantime, the lines are idle and no planes are being delivered to customers, causing problems for a growing list of companies, from airlines such as Virgin VA.UL to metals makers Alcoa Inc and parts suppliers such as Spirit Aerosystems Holdings Inc.

BOEING TAKES HIT

Boeing itself is losing about $100 million (58.5 million pounds) a day in revenue and 1 cent per share in profit, according to analysts.

It delivered only 84 aircraft in the third quarter, down 23 percent from 109 a year ago, which means a similar drop in revenue for Boeing's commercial plane unit, which accounts for half of the company's overall business. Boeing, like other planemakers, gets the bulk of plane payments on delivery.

Wall Street analysts are now expecting earnings of $1.15 per share for the third-quarter, when Boeing announces results on October 22. That is well below the $1.43 per share last year.

Boeing stock, roiled by the strike and broader financial concerns, hit a four-year low of $46.08 on Thursday.

METAL FATIGUE

Alcoa is the latest and largest company to feel the effect of the strike, as the aluminium giant this week reported a 47-percent slump in profit from its flat-rolled product business for the quarter, partly because of the stoppage.

Universal Stainless & Alloy Products Inc, which makes steel for aircraft component makers, this week cut its third-quarter profit outlook by almost a half, partly because of the strike. That followed a profit warning last week from Brush Engineered Materials Inc, which makes beryllium alloys for lightweight metal parts.

Producers of titanium -- which makes up 15 percent of Boeing's new 787 Dreamliner -- are also set to suffer. Wall Street is expecting lower earnings for Allegheny Technologies Inc, Titanium Metals Corp and RTI International Metals Inc, partly because of the strike, although none of those firms has commented publicly.

Hexcel Corp, which makes carbon-fibre composite materials for use in the 787, withdrew its full-year profit forecast last month because of the strike. Paint and coating manufacturer PPG Industries Inc said last month the strike was causing delays in orders.

HIGH-TECH COMPONENTS

The companies that make specialized equipment for Boeing's planes are in the front line, as they cannot easily find alternative buyers for their products.

Cockpit electronics firm Rockwell Collins Inc has said it may lose up to $40 million of revenue in a 45-day strike, a fraction of the $4.77 billion revenue analysts expect this fiscal year. To be safe, the company is delaying hiring and cutting overtime in case the strike drags on.

The worst-hit supplier is Spirit Aerosystems, a former unit of Boeing, which makes fuselage and wing parts. The Wichita, Kansas-based company cut production, introduced a shortened work week and withdrew its financial guidance just two days after the strike began. The company, sold off by Boeing in 2005, is still reliant on the U.S. plane maker, getting 87 percent of its revenue from the company last year.

In the engine business, Barnes Group Inc, which supplies nozzles to General Electric Co for use on 787 engines, withdrew its full-year earnings outlook last week, citing the strike as an issue.

CFM International, jointly owned by General Electric and France's Safran, has also slowed production. The joint-venture, which makes the engines for Boeing's best-selling 737, could lose up to $100 million in revenue based on a four-week strike, according to a Safran spokesman.

AIRLINES ON HOLD

The world's airlines, Boeing's main customers, are putting back plans because of delays in getting planes delivered.

Virgin Blue Holdings Ltd said last week it would delay the launch of its new long-haul service from Australia to the United States because it could not predict the length of the Boeing strike and when it would receive its planes.

Air Canada and national rival WestJet Airlines Ltd have both said their growth plans would be put back by delayed deliveries, and Ireland's low-cost carrier Ryanair said it may have to delay opening some new routes planned for next year.

Alaska Air Group Inc warned this week it would have to cut capacity more than it had planned due to delayed deliveries.