FAA rebuffs Boeing with vow to scrutinise all 737 MAX deliveries

WASHINGTON: US aviation regulators will conduct the final approval of factory-fresh Boeing 737 Max jets rather than allowing company employees to handle routine signoffs before the planes are delivered.

The plan amounts to the latest signal from the Federal Aviation Administration that it intends to retain full control over all aspects of the grounded jetliner as Boeing prepares to finalise fixes and restart shipments to customers. The Max, the company’s best-selling model, has been banned from flying since March after two deadly crashes killed 346 people.

FAA Administrator Steve Dickson has been emphasising that the agency won’t be pushed to move too hastily on decisions related to the Max, even as tensions rise between the planemaker and its chief regulator. That may add to the difficult logistics that Boeing faces once the Max is cleared to fly, as it works with airlines and lessors to return the jetliner to passenger service.


“The FAA notified Boeing today that the agency will retain authority over the issuance of Airworthiness Certificates for all newly manufactured 737 Max aircraft,” the agency said in a statement on Tuesday.