Kerry Lynch stepped into the role of editor of the&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;monthly magazine in May 2022 after serving with&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;for eight years. She joined&nbsp;AIN&nbsp;in December 2014 as a senior editor covering Washington and business aviation news. She has also served on Convention News teams, including as editor of&nbsp;HAI Convention News. Lynch previously spent 25 years with Aviation Week. During her time there, she reported for and later steered&nbsp;The Weekly of Business Aviation, oversaw business aviation content on the&nbsp;Aviation Week Intelligence Network, served on the&nbsp;Show News&nbsp;staff, and held roles as the Washington columnist for&nbsp;Business &amp; Commercial Aviation&nbsp;and&nbsp;Overhaul &amp; Maintenance&nbsp;monthly magazines. In 2021 she was honored with the National Business Aviation Association Platinum Wing Award for lifetime achievement in journalism and was the 2004 recipient of the National Air Transportation Association’s Aviation Journalism Excellence Award. She also has been a recipient of an Aerospace Media Award for business aviation (2022) and NBAA Gold Wing Award (2003, 2024). Lynch graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor of arts in journalism.

Editor, AIN monthly magazine

Kerry Lynch

The Boeing 737 Max family inched closer to return to service following the U.S. FAA’s release on Monday of a proposed airworthiness directive&nbsp;calling for four key design changes surrounding the maneuvering characteristics augmentation system (MCAS) and the angle of attack (AoA) sensors.

 


<a href="https://bit.ly/33tul2x">The notice of proposed rulemaking (NPRM)</a>, which will be open for comment for 45 days, stems from the ongoing review of the Max family in the aftermath&nbsp;of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 and the Lion Air Flight 610 fatal accidents and was accompanied by the release of a <a href="https://bit.ly/2EEVjto">Preliminary Summary of the FAA’s Review of the Boeing 737 Max</a>. That summary might continue to be updated as it continues to work with Boeing on the certification review of the Max family, which has been grounded now for well more than a year, the FAA said.

 


While the agency called the release of the NPRM a key step, the FAA cautioned a number of key steps are still ahead before the aircraft can return to service, including multiple operations and flight training reviews. In addition, the FAA must still review and sign off on Boeing’s final design documentation, issue a continued airworthiness notification to the international community, rescind the grounding order, issue airworthiness certificates, and approve operator training programs.

 


Boeing welcomed the proposal, saying, "We're continuing to make steady progress towards the safe return to service, working closely with the FAA and other global regulators. While we still have a lot of work in front of us, this is an important milestone in the certification process."

 


The NPRM’s proposed changes, meanwhile, are designed to address issues surrounding aircraft controllability. The agency pointed to flight data recording indications that “if a single erroneously high AoA sensor input is received by the flight control system, the…MCAS can command repeated airplane nose-down trim of the horizontal stabilizer.” This condition could impede aircraft control and lead to “excessive airplane nose-down attitude, significant altitude loss, and impact with terrain, the FAA said.

 


Specifically, the NPRM would require updating flight control software with new control laws to prevent erroneous MCAS activation; incorporating new and revised flight crew procedures in the airplane flight manual to ensure the flight crew can recognize and respond to erroneous stabilizer movement; installing new Max display system software to ensure the pilots are alerted if the aircraft’s AoA sensors disagree by a certain amount and indicate a potential failure; and changing the horizontal stabilizer trim wire routing installations to bring them into compliance with the agency’s latest standards.

 


In addition, it would require operators to complete an AoA sensor system test and perform an operational readiness flight before returning each airplane to service. The NPRM further directs operators to incorporate more restrictive provisions in the FAA-approved minimum equipment list surrounding the dispatch of the aircraft with certain inoperative equipment.

News and developments about airplanes, helicopters and unmanned air vehicles used in all varieties of operations, including airlines, military, business, commercial, general aviation and private.

FAA Proposes Design Changes for Service Return of Max

The release of a proposed airworthiness directive is a key step in bringing the Max back to service, Boeing and the FAA agree.

2024 Corporate Aviation Leadership Summit

Joseph Carfagna Jr.

News and issues relating to business, corporate and private aviation, primarily regarding turbine-engine-powered airplanes and helicopters. Subjects include aircraft, engines, maintenance, operations, personnel, acquisitions, accidents, safety, security, and training.

Certainty benefits the preowned business aircraft market

AINsight: Election Results and the Fence

Ultra-long-range model has amassed 75 records, many from customer trips

Speed Records Abound for Bombardier's Global 7500

We talk through the process from conception to delivery

Flying Privately: How Aircraft Like the Bombardier Global 8000 Come to Life

Hanneke Weitering

News and issues about aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), covering all segments of the aviation industry; and modifications for aircraft and engines. Subjects include product support of aircraft, engines and avionics, MRO company mergers, acquisitions, announcements and personnel, Airworthiness Directives, Supplemental Type Certificate approvals and other topics.

News about simulators and training procedures, as well as workforce.

AltiSky will assemble, sell, and service VoltAero's aircraft

VoltAero Picks U.S. Distributor for Cassio Hybrid-electric Aircraft 

Jennifer Leach English

Company noncommittal on expanding its lineup upwards, citing $1B investment cost

Embraer’s Plans for a Larger Bizjet Remain Up in the Air

Operations ebbed, backlogs were steady, and available aircraft increased

GJC: Bizjet Market Continues To Stabilize in 3Q2024

Greenville-based charter operator pre-orders 10 eVTOL air taxis

SAI Flight To Operate SkyDrive eVTOL in South Carolina

Charles Alcock

News and developments about aircraft engines, including turbofan, turboprop, turboshaft and piston.

More In Aircraft