from the Will-they-tell-you-it’s-the-max? dept.
FAA clears Boeing 737 Max to fly again after 20-month grounding spurred by deadly crashes:
The Federal Aviation Administration on Wednesday cleared the Boeing's 737 Max to fly again after a nearly two-year ban, a turning point in a protracted crisis for the aircraft giant stemming from two crashes of its top-selling plane that killed 346 people.
"The design and certification of this aircraft included an unprecedented level of collaborative and independent reviews by aviation authorities around the world," the FAA said in a statement. "Those regulators have indicated that Boeing's design changes, together with the changes to crew procedures and training enhancements, will give them the confidence to validate the aircraft as safe to fly in their respective countries and regions."
Boeing shares were up 6% in premarket trading after the FAA ungrounded the jets.
The end of the 20-month flight ban gives Boeing the chance to start handing over the roughly 450 Max jetliners it has produced but has been unable to deliver to customers after regulators ordered airlines to stop flying them in March 2019.
(Score: 2) by MostCynical on Thursday November 19 2020, @05:16AM (1 child)
users find out their booked flight is on a 737MCAS.. Rebook? Cancel? Demand discount?
737 MCAS flights become cheaper (no demand), more expensive (not enough demand)
Free market will decide who is worthy of additional risk. (or the insurance underwriters will)
"I guess once you start doubting, there's no end to it." -Batou, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex
(Score: 5, Insightful) by zocalo on Thursday November 19 2020, @08:51AM
Besides, as we've been told repeatedly, this aircraft and its control systems/software have been scrutinised thoroughly, much more so than any other commercial aircraft in recent history. It's not just Boeing's reputation that is on the like now; it's the FAA and all the rest of the regulatory bodies that have signed off on it as now being safe to fly. If one does auger in, regardless of the cause, they're all going to get tried and sentenced in the court of public opinion by the media long before the actual official investigation has even accessed any flight recorder data that might have been recovered. Good luck to any airline hoping to remain solvent if they've bet the farm on a fleet of predominantly 737Max airframes if/when that happens.
UNIX? They're not even circumcised! Savages!
(Score: 2) by fadrian on Thursday November 19 2020, @05:39AM (6 children)
Right now we're all just trying to get through risking our lives with the corona virus. Now you want us to fly on some sketchy, germy plane that has shown a tendency to crash? I think I'd make each employee of the FAA and Boeing and their families to take at least one cross-country flight on these planes to make sure they really are safe before I'd book a flight on one. Maybe the airlines using these could market the trips to thrill-seekers until then.
That is all.
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 19 2020, @08:07AM (5 children)
Imagine what it would be like if you ventured outside again and you took your risk getting struck by lightning.
The FAA's test pilot did apparently fly the plane himself to verify the corrective actions.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by sonamchauhan on Thursday November 19 2020, @03:59PM (4 children)
(Score: 1, Informative) by Anonymous Coward on Friday November 20 2020, @08:40AM (3 children)
Yes they did. The test flights included fault injection to determine how the system responded to various failures.
(Score: 2) by sonamchauhan on Saturday November 21 2020, @08:47AM (2 children)
Thanks.
But: "The test flights included fault injection..." - flights? the FAA dude did a single test flight.
So I don't think he tested faults injected into the AoA system - other test pilots must have done that. Instead, he spent time: [seattletimes.com] "practicing high angle-of-attack patterns, activating the flight control software".
So basically he tested MCAS activating validly. This is materially different from MCAS activating unintentionally on level flight or standard climb to cruising altitude -- the behaviour which brought two planes down. He should have tested fault injection personally (with a prepared copilot of course) to see how pilots would cope with that in future.
So I don't think he did his job. He deflects like a king when questioned about the additional (synthetic sensor) the Europeans have required. And he's still trying to protect Boeing's tech secrets:
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday November 21 2020, @08:23PM (1 child)
Yes, flights. As in multiple. The test you are referencing was a joint FAA/Boeing publicity stunt. It had nothing to do with the actual recertification of the plane by the FAA or anyone else. EASA and other regulators can do and have done their own test flights before certifying the aircraft to fly in their airspace as well.
(Score: 2) by sonamchauhan on Saturday December 05 2020, @09:04PM
I get what you mean. But my original question was did _he_ (the FAA administrator) fly with a broken AoA sensor.
Since he did not, he (personally) didn't test the situation that brought down two planes. It's just a publicity stunt, as you said.
(Score: 1) by fustakrakich on Thursday November 19 2020, @06:36AM (4 children)
Aircraft certification is under "Politics" now
La politica e i criminali sono la stessa cosa..
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 19 2020, @07:21AM
You must be new here.
(Score: 2) by c0lo on Thursday November 19 2020, @07:25AM (1 child)
Deep state. 737emacs-or-whatsitsname is Boeing, part of MIC and controlled by the Rothschilds. But Bill Gates wants to silence them up, cancel culture style (grin)
https://www.youtube.com/@ProfSteveKeen https://soylentnews.org/~MichaelDavidCrawford
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 19 2020, @03:00PM
I'll only fly on a 737vi.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Thursday November 19 2020, @09:06AM
It's anticipating the next crash, of course.
(Score: 2) by sonamchauhan on Thursday November 19 2020, @04:19PM (1 child)
The FAA chief sounds deflects like a king on Boeing's behalf. When asked about the additional AoA sensor (that US FAA is not mandating but other authorities are), he replies:
(Score: 2) by sonamchauhan on Thursday November 19 2020, @04:21PM
Linky: https://www.engineering.com/DesignerEdge/DesignerEdgeArticles/ArticleID/20730/FAA-Chief-Personally-Tests-the-737-MAX.aspx [engineering.com]