FAA clears Boeing 737 Max for flight certification

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has completed key test flights that could help revive Boeing 737 Max after being grounded for a while. The FAA confirmed on Monday that it has approved the start of Boeing 737 Max certification flights to begin as early as June 29, the FAA told FlightGlobal.

In an email to Congress on Sunday, the FAA said it was “clearing the way for flight certification testing to begin. Flights with FAA test pilots could begin as early as tomorrow, evaluating Boeing’s proposed changes to the automated flight control system on the 737 Max.”

A certification flight test plays a crucial role in returning the Boeing 737 Max to service. Certification flights are among the final steps that lead to the FAA issuing airworthiness directive (AD). The airworthiness directives ensure that operators must abide by certain measures before returning jets to revenue service. Boeing has said that it is hopeful that AD will come in due time to allow it to resume 737 Max deliveries by the third quarter of the year.

Boeing 737 Max Timeline 

Over the past couple of weeks, the FAA has been reviewing the system safety assessment Boeing submitted. The agency said in an email that the FAA’s Type Inspection Authorization Board had completed the review and was ready to start a flight certification test with Boeing. Once that has been completed, the FAA will still have to approve the new pilot training and other steps necessary to approve flying passengers by September. The pilot training assessment is done by a joint Operations Evaluation Board (JOEB). The panel comprises of regulators from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and other countries, and pilots.

The EU’s Aviation Safety Agency also insisted on conducting its own safety assessment on Boeing as part of the recertification process of the aircraft. According to the EU agency, the US regulator is prone to having an oversight due to its close relationship with Boeing, and may not be as strict as expected.

On Boeing’s part, it has gone ahead to develop and fix the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) system which triggered the two previous crashes that led to the global grounding of the jet in 2019. Boeing (BA) shares dropped 2.8% to 170.01 in Friday’s market. Spirit AeroSystems (SPR), top Boeing 737 Max supplier also lost 5%. While General Electric (GE), Boeing 737 Max engine supplier fell 2.85%.

Also, Berenberg analyst Andrew Gollan lowered his Boeing stock price target to 150 on Thursday due to intense uncertainties that surround the airline industry as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Over the past few weeks, Boeing stock and airline stocks, in general, have dropped hard.

Gollan believes that weak demand will greatly affect Boeing 737 Max production and deliveries, but he is certain that the company will pick back up as soon as air travel rebounds after the coronavirus wave. “Boeing certainly has major product strategy issues to address and while the MAX’s potential is diminished, we still firmly believe it will feature in the market as the airline industry drags itself out of this crisis,” he wrote.

Keynote of from Boeing's recent Max 737 test

• In-flight testing indicates that Boeing  737 Max may get recertified to fly very soon
• The FAA will still have to approve the new pilot training and other steps necessary to approve flying passengers by September
  
• The 773 Max was grounded last year march following two crashes that killed 346 people