“ The comeback is always stronger than the setback”
In modern-day aviation, this is very much applicable to the comeback of the Boeing 737 MAX. Now for the non Aviators, this topic might be an alien topic; So, let’s know the facts about the Boeing 737 and find out its potential in this huge Aviation industry.
Before stating do not ignore the post by looking at the size of the article, read this till the end to know the details about the aircraft. Follow Aeronefs for more blogs and verified aviation jobs.
The 737 MAX had its first flight on January 29, 2016, It was built to compete with the A-320 neo and gained FAA certification on March 8, 2017. This is considered the company’s best-selling aircraft, and it comes in four variants Boeing 737 MAX-7, MAX -8, MAX-9, and MAX-10.
The Aircraft is considered one of the most advanced systems Aircraft with increased thrust and Advanced Avionics. The 737 MAX suffered a recurring failure in the Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation Systems (MCAS) causing two fatal accidents, Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, in which 346 people died.
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The Federal Aviation Administration ordered to ground the Boeing 737 Max Aircraft worldwide in March 2019. A lot of modifications Were made and in November 2020 FAA ordered the ungrounding of the B-737 Max Aircraft. Now let’s analyze the journey of 737 max ungrounding and the details of the Aircraft in brief.
Accident and Investigation of Boeing 737 max
The Discovery of the Boeing 737 Max was to compete with the A-320 neo and this Max was grounded in March 2019. On October 29 2018, Lion Air Flight 610 took off from Jakarta. It quickly experienced problems in maintaining altitude, entered into an uncontrollable dive and crashed into the Java Sea about 13 minutes after takeoff. Then on March 10 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 from Nairobi suffered similar problems, crashing into the desert around six minutes after leaving the runway.
It was estimated that 346 people died in the accident. After these two accidents, FAA ordered to put a ban on the B-737max. This duration of 20 months of grounding an aircraft is the first time for an American airline.
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Recommendations in the preliminary report focus on the issues with the flight control system that caused the nose of the plane to dip down. Multiple organizations conducted investigations into the safety of the Boeing 737 Max 8, including the U.S. Department of Transportation Special Committee, the U.S. Department of Transportation Office of the Inspector General, and the Joint Authorities Technical Review.
The civil aviation authorities of Canada, China, the European Union, Indonesia, Japan, and the United Arab Emirates participated in the Joint Authorities Technical Review, which assessed the certification process for the Boeing 737 Max.
The FAA considered the reports from the other reviews and investigations, as well as the NTSB’s recommendations, in its return to service review of Boeing’s safety adjustments. The FAA required that Boeing update MCAS to address the issues detailed in its report and that pilots be trained on operating MCAS.
The European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) conducted its own return to service review for the Boeing 737 Max. The EASA’s report determined that the changes Boeing had made to the 737 Max had made the plane safe but also specified changes that, although not related to issues immediately threatening the safety of passengers, Boeing would have to make before the plane would be allowed to service the EU. After lots of verification from the FAA, it finally ordered it to make the requisite changes and issued airworthiness directives so that B-737 max can return to service.
Boeing on the accident
After FAA’s approval to resume flights on 18th November 2020 Boeing issued the changes that it has made on B-737 max . The main issue was regarding MCAS software and as per reports. MCAS, or Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System, provides consistent airplane handling characteristics in a very specific set of unusual flight conditions. MCAS now contains multiple enhanced protections:
· Measurements from two Angle of Attack (AOA) sensors will be compared.
· Each sensor will submit its own data to the airplane’s flight control computer.
· MCAS will only be activated if both sensors agree.
· MCAS will only be activated once.
· MCAS will never override the pilot’s ability to control the airplane using the control column alone.
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Apart from MCAS many more initiatives and improvements were taken by Boeing. During the review and testing process, a few issues were discovered that did not directly relate to the Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) or the accidents. These items will be addressed on every airplane before it returns to service.
· Developed software updates to address theoretical horizontal stabilizer issue.
· Determined solution to modify some wiring to meet regulators’ requirements.
· Checking stored airplanes for Foreign Object Debris (FOD).
· Updated software to address the remote possibility of autopilot disengagement .
These are the few technical changes made by Boeing as per regulatory authorities. Additional training is being provided to the pilots from across the globe to meet certain requirements and made the pilots familiar with the changes made in the simulation. Special maintenance training is provided to the aircraft mechanics so that they may issue proper airworthiness certificates.
The financial aspect of Boeing 737 max is one of the issues that loom for the company. The company has 370 of the 737 Max jets ready to be delivered, even though those deliveries resumed late last year. It had 450 of those planes on hand when the FAA approved a resumption of passenger flights in 2020 and is expected to deliver half of them by the end of 2021.
But now Boeing is unlikely to hit that target, and its new goal is to deliver “most” of the planes by the end of 2022. While the company has gotten orders for 679 Max jets since the grounding ended, that hasn’t made up for the more than 1,000 orders for the plane cancelled since the grounding.
The Boeing 737 MAX groundings have had a deep financial effect on the aviation industry and a significant effect on the national economy of the United States. No airline took delivery of the MAX during the groundings. Boeing slowed MAX production to 42 aircraft per month until January 2020, when they halted until the airplane is reapproved by regulators.
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Boeing has suffered directly through increased costs, loss of sales and revenue, loss of reputation, victims litigation, client compensation, decreased credit rating and lowered stock value. In January 2020, the company estimated a loss of $18.4 billion for 2019, and it reported 183 cancelled MAX orders for the year. The company could still have made a comeback but the pandemic was a major challenge that it faced. Many airlines were bankrupt and the demand for passenger travel decreased a considerable amount.
Boeing is a prestigious company and is also one of the largest aviation companies in the world. It will make a comeback as it has always done and as I said previously the words “comeback is stronger” . the Boeing 737 max is one of the most popular aircraft in the world with dashing features hope it will rule the skies again by mid-2022.
As of the current scenario, based on the information provided by Boeing, as of the end of January 2019, there were 4,661 unfilled orders for Boeing 737 MAX aircraft. Even though leasing companies have placed many of these orders, over 2,400 of them were made by airlines. There are also 1,045 orders from unidentified customers.
Akasa Airlines contracted for 77 Boeing 737 max aircraft, SouthWest airlines with 249 orders and many more.
