Troubled Boeing Max poised for flight test as plans made to train pilots
Boeing Co. and federal regulators are preparing to hold a critical set of test flights on the 737 Max early next week, and laying plans for other milestones toward ending the jetliner’s 15-month grounding including convening a panel of pilots to go over a proposed training course.
Aviation industry officials briefed on the plans, which still haven’t been finalized, said that the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has reviewed Boeing’s safety analysis of fixes it has made and is comfortable moving to the next step: putting the plane through its paces with test pilots.
The first of several days of test flights could come as early as Monday, according to three people familiar with the plans who weren’t permitted to discuss the still-tentative situation publicly. Boeing had privately targeted hosting the FAA flights by the end of June.
“The team is making progress toward FAA certification flights in the near future,” the agency said in a statement.
“The FAA is reviewing Boeing’s documentation to determine whether the company has met the criteria to move to the next stage of evaluation,” the agency said. “We will conduct the certification flights only after we are satisfied with that data.”
Boeing declined to comment. Regulators and Boeing are also hoping to convene an international panel of airline pilots to test a proposed new training course for Max flight crews, possibly in late July and early August, the people said.
Travel restrictions related to the global pandemic have added uncertainty over how such sessions would occur. Plans are being discussed to allow the group to perform its work remotely in flight simulators around the world, rather than flying to Boeing ’s main training centre in Miami, Florida, where a COVID-19 outbreak is raging.
Boeing shares pared their losses on Bloomberg ’s report of the certification flight, declining 2.6 per cent to $170.33 at 3:05 p.m. in New York. The shares had tumbled as much as 4.2 per cent in the trading session after Bernstein analyst Douglas Harned downgraded the company to “sell.” He cited uncertainty over the 737’s comeback and the prospect of a pandemic disrupting air travel through mid-decade.
Setting a date for certification flights is one of the most critical steps on Boeing’s road to resuming service on its best-selling jet, which was grounded in March 2019 amid a worldwide furor following the second fatal crash in less than five months.