This archive report was first published on 4 August 2020.
On August 3, 2020, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) proposed changes to the Boeing 737 Max, potentially clearing the way for the plane to start flying again by the end of the year.
The proposed changes include updating the plane's flight control software, revising crew procedures, and rerouting internal wiring. Once formally published, the proposal will be open to public comment for 45 days, after which the agency will issue a final ruling.
The FAA concluded in a related report that its proposal was in line with Boeing's recommendations. The report stated that the company's recommendations had sufficiently addressed the problems that contributed to two fatal crashes, resulting in the worldwide grounding of the jet.
According to the FAA, Boeing's proposed changes to the 737 Max design, flight crew procedures, and maintenance procedures effectively mitigate the airplane-related safety issues that contributed to the crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed 346 people.
The Max has been grounded since March 2019, costing Boeing billions of dollars. Once the FAA's proposal is official, Boeing can begin to make the changes and ready the planes for flight, a process that could take more than a week per jet and involves system checks, deep cleaning, and software updates.
