Boeing to restart 737 MAX test flights this week
20 months after the first fatal crash and 15 months since the jet was grounded, the Boeing 737 takes to the skies again.
By Bloomberg News, June 29 2020
Boeing will hold a critical set of test flights on the 737 MAX this 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.
The US Federal Aviation Administration confirmed the start of the multiday program over the weekend, after reviewing the manufacturer’s safety assessment of the multiple fixes devised for the plane.
"Over the past several weeks the FAA has been reviewing the system safety assessment submitted by Boeing," the agency said in an email. "The FAA’s Type Inspection Authorization Board has completed its review, clearing the way for flight certification testing to begin."
The action signals that the government is finally comfortable with the multiple fixes that the planemaker has devised for the plane, which has been grounded for more than 15 months after two fatal crashes.
Two people briefed on the planning said earlier Sunday that the goal is to begin the tests Monday, but the start is still subject to last-minute delays. Such tests are one of the final stages by the government before it certifies an aircraft.
The FAA will have one of its test pilots flying the plane alongside a Boeing pilot. They will be accompanied in the cockpit by an FAA flight-test engineer and a Boeing flight-test manager. Additional specialists will be in the cabin monitoring computerized instrumentation on the plane.
Boeing, in a statement on Sunday, said “We continue to work diligently on safely returning the 737 MAX to service. We defer to the FAA and global regulators on the process.”
The FAA said in its letter that a number of steps remain before the plane can resume carrying passengers in the U.S., and by extension, elsewhere around the world.
“It is important to note, getting to this step does not mean the FAA has completed its compliance evaluation or other work associated with return to service,” the agency said. “The FAA has not made a decision on return to service.”
It will take months for the agency to complete new pilot-training standards and issue regulations governing multiple software and hardware changes to the plane.
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.
However, several more hurdles remain before the plane can get its final certification from regulators. Airline customers have been told that it could come as soon as September if all goes well, although they still have to retrain pilots and perform maintenance on the fleets of planes that have been in storage before they enter service.
The FAA added that it will retain the authority of inspecting each new plane to ensure that it meets all federal requirements.
In the past, the agency had largely delegated the responsibility to Boeing employees. Last November the agency said its own inspectors would take over that task. Inspections of undelivered planes after the accidents had found numerous instances in which debris from manufacturing had been left in areas such as fuel tanks.
The 737 MAX was grounded by FAA on March 13, 2019, after most of the rest of the world had already sidelined the plane following the second fatal crash involving a flight-control feature. The crashes – in October 2018 off the coast of Indonesia and in March 2019 near Addis Ababa – killed a total of 346 people.
An examination of the software that was driving down the plane’s nose repeatedly as a result of a malfunction prompted the discovery of other issues that required upgrades to improve safety on the plane.
Adding redundancy to its flight-control computer took months and late last year Boeing discovered that the way it had installed wiring on the jet didn’t meet federal regulations.
The crashes have also prompted a reassessment of how aircraft manufacturers and regulators around the world assume pilots will react to certain emergencies.
The certification flights are scheduled to occur over three separate days. The agency, which worked closely with Boeing during the process of revising the plane, has a list of maneuvers that it will demonstrate on the plane to verify that alterations to its system function as designed.
Certification flights rarely result in surprises. In this case, devising the revisions to the Boeing 737 MAX have been one of the most scrutinized processes in history as outside panels of experts advised FAA and regulators in other nations also undertook reviews of the plane.
Regulators and Boeing are also hoping to convene an international panel of airline pilots to test a proposed new training course for 737 MAX flight crews, possibly in late July and early August.
This article is published under license from Bloomberg Media: the original article can be viewed here
Bloomberg News is one of the world's largest and most respected international news agencies; its content is published on Executive Traveller under a licensed syndication arrangement.
03 May 2013
Total posts 684
Won't get me anywhere near that thing, let alone in it..criminal company & death trap aircraft.
Qantas
19 Apr 2012
Total posts 1429
Has anybody got around to re-interviewing all those who said it was poorly trained ‘third world pilots' that was the problem (at the very beginning) for them to reflect on those views.
Qantas - Qantas Frequent Flyer
11 Oct 2014
Total posts 687
The first step would be to publicly apologise to both LionAir and Ethiopian Airlines management for making accusations against their organisations.
The second step would be to publicly apologise to the global flying public for abusing trust in a company with 100 year history which poor management blew in less than 3 years.
The third step would be to aplogise to the FAA for using the Boeing name and reputation to fool the FAA into accepting poor judgement and cutting FAA corners and costs.
The fourth step would be to apologise to the banks and stockholders who so fervently believed in Boeing acumen and honesty, but who 'lost their shirt' because of dishonestyand questionable management decisions.
The fifth step would be to unreservedly accept responsibility for the LionAir and Ethiopian Airlines' deaths and not to attempt to minimize compensation to the bereaved families.
The sixth step would be to apologise to the American public for destroying trust and respect in what has previously been a respected US success story.
There are a hell of a lot more steps, but I'm sure you can see where this is headed.
It is hard to see where, even with all the FAA / Boeing testing under the sun. a situation will arise where the -MAX product will be universally respected and flown without question. Boeing has destroyed that trust. It matters not how brilliant the redesign, testing, safety etc is. or may be. It is all about perception for the flying public ~ and that is something which has been truly decimated. Think back to the early 1950's and the British Comet. Once you lose trust, it is gone for a long, long, long time.
01 Nov 2018
Total posts 81
Patrickk I don't think it's got anything to do with poorly trained pilots, I'm sure a lot of pilots are very well trained, Boeing knew they created a lemon and a coffin in the sky, the 737 is an old plane, it's time is up and time for something new to reach our skies. What have Boeing run out of aeronautical engineers where no one can get on the drawing board and introduce a new plane. How come Airbus can do it not only that Airbus also have a much wider variety of aeroplanes than what Boeing offered. Definitely won't be flying in a 737, sorry Boeing.
Qantas
19 Apr 2012
Total posts 1429
Albinol that is my point isn't time those people who said that were re-interviewed to eat their words and own up to racist attitudes.
Virgin Australia - Velocity Rewards
15 Aug 2012
Total posts 171
Ironically after all the scrutiny the 737Max could be one of the safest aircraft to fly.
19 Jun 2020
Total posts 19
For me it goes far beyond licensing 'an aircraft type'. It is about reforming the company culture that looks to have cut the safety corners in the first place.
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