Long trip remains for 737 Max
FAA proposes numerous fixes before Boeing plane returns
U.S. aviation regulators have proposed a long list of fixes to Boeing Co.’s grounded 737 Max in one of the most extensive set of requirements the agency has issued following an accident.
The Federal Aviation Administration on Monday asked for public comment on the changes it expects to require to the plane linked to two fatal crashes.
In addition to fixes specific to the system implicated in the accidents, it would mandate broad computer changes to improve reliability, add a warning light that was inoperative in the two crashes and require rerouting electrical wires that don’t meet safety rules.
The public has 45 days to comment on the FAA’s plans. That means the plane most likely can’t get the go-ahead to return until October at the earliest. With airlines having to retrain pilots and perform maintenance on the grounded fleet, it will take weeks or months longer before the planes begin carrying passengers.
The release of the FAA proposal shows that, after 16 months of the plane’s grounding and a series of investigative reports and congressional hearings, aviation regulators are satisfied that the fixes will allow the plane to safely resume service. Flight tests of the redesigned systems by the FAA were completed July 2.
The agency “has preliminarily determined that Boeing’s proposed changes to the 737 Max design, flight crew procedures and maintenance procedures effectively mitigate the airplane-related safety issues” revealed in the crashes, it said in a summary report it included with the proposal.
The FAA also proposed requiring a test of the sensor — known as an angle of attack vane — that failed in the crashes and giving each aircraft a test flight before it’s permitted to return to service.
“We’re continuing to make steady progress toward the safe return to service, working closely with the FAA and other global regulators,” Boeing said in a statement. “While we still have a lot of work in front of us, this is an important milestone in the certification process.”
The changes listed by the FAA track with those that have been discussed for months, indicating no new problems were found in the later stages of the agency’s review.
A pair of crashes — each tied to a flawed system that malfunctioned and repeatedly dove the planes — killed 346 people less than five months apart.
The first occurred Oct. 29, 2018, in the Java Sea shortly after takeoff from Jakarta, Indonesia. The second was March 10, 2019, in Ethiopia. The plane was grounded worldwide three days after the second crash.