Boeing’s 737 MAX was grounded in the United States for 20 months after two fatal accidents in five months that killed 346 people, until it was approved by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to resume flights in November 2020. But less than half a year after the resumption of flight, and because of electrical grounding problems were grounded again, now, things have turned around again. On May 12, Boeing received FAA approval to repair electrical grounding problems that grounded more than 100 737 MAX aircraft, clearing the way for the rapid resumption of the 737 MAX aircraft, which was grounded in early April, Reuters reported.
FAA officials confirmed that Boeing has approved the 12th submitted two service announcements and instructions on repair issues. Boeing said: “Following final approval from the FAA, we have issued a service announcement to the affected fleet. As we prepare to resume aircraft delivery, we are also completing (repair) work. ”
The announcement is a relief to many U.S. carriers using the 737 MAX, which has been eager to get the 737 MAX back into service as the U.S. enters the traditional summer travel season in late May and demand for air travel increases.
FAA Chief Steve Dickson told U.S. lawmakers earlier Tuesday that the electrical grounding problem that grounded a quarter of the aircraft’s fleet needed a “very direct solution.” He also said he had confidence in the safety of the 737 MAX.
Reuters reported earlier this month that the FAA had asked Boeing to provide an updated analysis to prove that the Boeing 737 MAX subsystem was not affected by electrical grounding problems first discovered in three areas of the aircraft in April.
Sources say the electrical grounding problem came after Boeing changed its manufacturing methods to speed up production of aircraft. It is also said that this change has improved the drilling process. The airline, which uses the aircraft, grounded dozens of 737 MASs in early April after Boeing warned about the problem.
The problem is said to be related to backup power control units in the cockpits of some recently constructed aircraft. In addition, this problem was identified in two other locations in the new cockpit, including the dashboard stored in the control unit and facing the pilot.
The problem also forced the delivery of the new 737 MAX aircraft to a halt, and was then discovered in two other locations in the cockpit, which also halted the delivery of the new aircraft, including lockers for the control unit and a dashboard for the pilot.
Dixon said the FAA meets regularly with Boeing to discuss the performance of the 737 MAX. The FAA said in February that satellite data would be used to track all Boeing 737 MAX aircraft under an agreement.
