FAA halts Boeing MAX production expansion

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will not approve any expansion of MAX aircraft production, including the 737-9 MAX, increased oversight of Boeing and its suppliers.

The January 5 incident with the Boeing 737-9 MAX must never happen againthe Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) announced.

The FAA also approved a comprehensive inspection and maintenance procedure that must be performed on each of the 171 grounded Boeing 737-9 MAX aircraft. After successful completion, the aircraft will be able to be returned to service.

“We grounded the Boeing 737-9 MAX just hours after the incident over Portland and made it clear that this aircraft will not return to service until it is safe,” he said. FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker.

“The comprehensive and improved review our team completed after several weeks of information gathering gives me and the FAA confidence to proceed with the inspection and maintenance phase.

This will not be a return to normal for Boeing, Whitaker warned. “We will not accept any requests from Boeing to expand production or approve additional production lines for the 737 MAX until we are confident that the quality control issues discovered during this process have been resolved,” he said.he pointed out.

The FAA also called JCorrective Action Review Board (CARB) composed of safety experts, reviewed and approved the inspection and maintenance process.

After the inspection and enhanced maintenance process is completed on each aircraft, 737-9 MAX door stoppers They will conform to the original design and are safe to operate. This aircraft will not fly until the process is completed and compliance with the original design is confirmed.

The improved maintenance process will require: inspection of specific screws, guides and hardware, detailed visual inspections of the left and right mid-cabin exit door plugs and dozens of related components; retighten fasteners and correct any damage or abnormal conditions, the international agency reported.

“The quality assurance issues we’ve seen are unacceptable,” Whitaker stated. “That’s why we will have more soldiers on the ground to scrutinize and monitor production and production activities.”

Increased oversight activities include: Limiting extended production of new Boeing 737 MAX aircraft to ensure accountability and full compliance with required quality control procedures.

Alternatively, initiate an investigation to examine Boeing’s compliance with the manufacturing requirements. The FAA will use all of its enforcement powers to ensure that the company is held accountable for any non-compliance.

Aggressively expand oversight of new aircraft with a greater presence at all Boeing facilities. Carefully monitor data to identify risks as well as initiate analysis of potential security-focused reforms around quality control and delegation.

The FAA will continue to support the National Transportation Safety Board’s (NTSB) investigation into Alaska Airlines Flight 1282. The NTSB is investigating and will provide any updates.