Boeing 737 Max set for key approval from European officials step next week

Europe's aviation safety regulator is preparing to take a major step toward approving the return of Boeing Co.'s 737 Max as soon as next week, according to people familiar with the matter.

Publication of a so-called proposed airworthiness directive by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency would trigger a 28day public consultation, putting the Max on track for final clearance by year-end or in early 2021.

EU approval would mark a milestone in Boeing's effort to return the Max to service outside the U.S., after the Federal Aviation Administration granted final clearance for the jet's return this week. The green light from EASA, which sought additional safety measures beyond what the FAA required, would allow Boeing to begin delivering already-built planes again in a region with major customers including Ryanair Holdings Plc.

“It's obviously great news for Boeing and should mean they kick off 2021 with an airplane that's flying in fleets again,” said George Ferguson, an analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence. “That's the path to recovery.”

Boeing fell 2.9 per cent to US$199.62 in New York. The shares advanced 42 per cent this month through Thursday, the biggest gain on the Dow Jones Industrial Average, buoyed by progress in coronavirus vaccines and the Max's return.

Backing by European regulators is seen as key to Boeing's effort to gain global support for the aircraft, after the Max crisis damaged the FAA'S reputation as the leader in air safety. Regulators in the United Arab Emirates are likely to follow suit without conducting their own flight tests, should U.S. and European officials clear the plane for commercial use, Bloomberg News reported in September.

EASA filed procedural documents on Friday that are a prerequisite to the proposed airworthiness directive's publication.

The agency has said it expects to publish the proposed directive by the end of this month.

The regulator's chief, Patrick Ky, signalled in October that he was satisfied with the changes Boeing made to the plane after two crashes within five months killed 346 people, leading to the global grounding of the 737 Max fleet in March 2019.

The EU'S approval would clear Boeing to begin delivering the Max outside the U.S., a critical move toward unlocking about US$12 billion in cash that's tied up in hundreds of jetliners built during the global grounding.