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Boeing
Half of Boeing’s sales come from the 737 Max
EU aviation regulators have planned flight tests for Boeing’s restless 737 Max aircraft.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said the tests would take place in Vancouver, Canada in the week beginning September 7.
Boeing’s best-selling aircraft was captured last year after two crashes that killed all 346 people on the planes.
The announcement comes two months after U.S. regulators began similar test flights for the jet.
However, EASA maintains that clearance by the US Federal Aviation Administration does not automatically mean clearance to fly in Europe.
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The agency said it had “slowly worked, in close cooperation with the FAA and Boeing, to put the Boeing 737 Max aircraft back into service as soon as possible, but only once has it been convinced it is safe”.
It said the process of planning the test flights was hampered by Covid-19 travel restrictions between Europe and the US
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Boeing’s 737 Max was grounded in March 2019 following a Ethiopian Airlines crash
It added: “While Boeing still has some definitive action to take, EASA considers the overall maturity of the redesign process is now sufficient to pass flight tests. These are a condition for the European Agency to approve the new design of the aircraft. to approve. “
EASA said simulator tests would take place from 1 September at London’s Gatwick Airport.
Making changes
Meanwhile, the FAA has proposed a comprehensive list of changes they want to make before the aircraft can fly commercially again.
These include updating flight control software, revising crew procedures and redirecting internal wiring.
Boeing hopes to launch the 737 Max again next year.
Air traffic controllers have grounded the 737 Max after two crashes – a Lion Air flight and an Ethiopian Airlines flight – within five months of each other.
In the crash, all 346 passengers and crew on the planes were killed.
The ruling triggered a financial crisis at the 103-year-old company, led to lawsuits by the families of victims and raised questions about how Boeing and the FAA carried out their safety approval process.
Investigators are blaming faults in the flight control system, which Boeing has been revising for months to meet new safety requirements.
