Boeing to withdraw MAX 7 exemption request

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2 years ago

Boeing’s said on Monday it was withdrawing a request for a key safety exemption that could have allowed U.S. regulators to speed up certification of its coming 737 MAX 7, in the latest fallout from the planemaker’s ongoing crisis.

Lawmakers had been pressuring the planemaker to withdraw the petition following a harrowing mid-air cabin blowout on Jan. 5 that has exposed numerous safety and quality control concerns at one of the world’s two major jetmakers.

The withdrawal, first reported by Reuters, throws the anticipated timeline for certifying Boeing’s MAX 7 and the larger, better-selling MAX 10 into further doubt because it may force Boeing to make design changes more quickly than it had planned.

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CEO David Calhoun withdrew the exemption request after being asked to do so in Capitol Hill meetings last week as Boeing grapples with growing safety concerns following the mid-air incident on a 737 MAX 9 jet operated by Alaska Airlines.

Boeing originally proposed the MAX 7 exemption run through May 2026 – the time period the company believed necessary to develop and certify design changes, but approval of the request was thrown into doubt after the Alaska Airlines accident.

“While we are confident that the proposed time-limited exemption for that system follows established FAA processes to ensure safe operation, we will instead incorporate an engineering solution that will be completed during the certification process,” Boeing said in a statement, without providing an estimate of how long that would take.

The MAX 10 will also require design changes if an exemption is not sought.

With information from Reuters