B-737 Max may be grounded till next year: Report

NEW YORK • Boeing's 737 Max may stay grounded until early 2020, the Wall Street Journal reported, months later than the guidance the planemaker is privately providing customers for resolving a software issue that surfaced last month.

The plane is expected to start flying again in January next year "under the latest scenario", the Journal said on Sunday, citing unidentified sources within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and pilot-union leaders. The situation is "fluid" and no firm timeline has been established, the paper said.

On Sunday, American Airlines Group said it would keep the jet off its schedule through Nov 2, the fifth time the airline has adjusted its flights to accommodate the Max's lengthening absence.

Last week, United Airlines Holdings removed the 737 Max from its schedule through early November.

Aviation regulators grounded the newest 737 after two crashes involving the plane killed 346 people.

On June 26, the FAA disclosed a separate software glitch that surfaced as Boeing tested a theoretical flight-control computer failure at the request of the US aviation administration.

That issue requires an additional patch by Boeing that will be included in the final package of flight-control software to be reviewed by global regulators before the Max is cleared for flight. "Boeing will not offer the 737 Max for certification by the FAA until we have satisfied all requirements for certification of the Max and its safe return to service," the company said in a statement at the time.

Once the global grounding is lifted, US airlines have said they will need several weeks to prepare the grounded planes to resume commercial operations and potentially train pilots.

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A version of this article appeared in the print edition of The Straits Times on July 16, 2019, with the headline B-737 Max may be grounded till next year: Report. Subscribe