In the previous post discussing Boeing’s 737 Max problem, I had expressed dismay at FAA’s decision that there was “no basis to order to grounding” of 737 Max aircraft after more than 48 hours had transpired after China and Europe had grounded them.
Today, we learn through WSJ (subscription required) that the Department of Transportation (DoT) is investigating FAA’s decision, while also scrutinizing the development process of 737 Max at Boeing. WSJ reports that the probe is examining all the communications between Boeing and the FAA.
Officials in those offices have been told not to delete any emails, reports or internal messages pertaining to those topics, people familiar with the matter said, adding that the probe also is scrutinizing communication between the FAA and Boeing.
Earlier, FAA had decided that it would not require simulating the automated system in the new 737 Max for pilots who had flown the previous 737s.
Files and documents covered by the directive also pertain to the FAA’s decision that extra flight-simulator training on the automated system wouldn’t be required for pilots transitioning from older models, according to people familiar with the matter.
The Main Issue: 737 has been a Cash cow for Boeing
The MAX’s grounding threatens Boeing’s ability to generate cash with plane deliveries halted. Boeing, which has been minting 737s at an unprecedented clip of 52 planes a month, plans to reach 57 planes monthly this year. The company has a backlog of more than 4,600 of the planes airlines have ordered and yet to receive.
In every way, there was supposed to be an easy and immediate transition from the older version of 737 to 737Max. Pilot training is an expensive proposition for airlines, so Boeing tried to minimize the differences with the earlier models as much as possible. However, the design changes on 737 implied that significant software adjustments had to be made on MCAS to adjust for training needs. Eventually, it seems that a lack of exposure to MCAS was the main issue.
While there is some disagreement among the pilots whether retraining was necessary under the MCAS system, the pilots were never specifically trained, for instance, on the MCAS system.
From investigations, more evidence seems to come to light. For years, FAA through congressional approval has been delegating the certification process to Boeing itself. Here is New Yorker.
On Sunday, the Seattle Times […] published the results of a lengthy investigation into the federal certification of the 737 Max. It found that the F.A.A. outsourced key elements of the certification process to Boeing itself, and that Boeing’s safety analysis of the new plane contained some serious flaws, including several relating to the MCAS.
Boeing definitely has a hard road ahead. More importantly, this is a significant loss of face for the FAA. Europe and Canada now want to run their independent tests before approving the 737 Max fixes — a deviation from the past policy of adopting FAA‘s regulatory decisions.
In the coming days, we will be finding out more about how MCAS and 737 Max were certified. Unfortunately, it took the loss of 346 lives to re-evaluate the lapses in operations testing and safeguards.