Aircraft
EASA To Strengthen Safety Reviews of U.S.-certified Aircraft
The EU aviation safety regulator expects to clear the Boeing 737 Max to fly again in Europe shortly.
A TUI Boeing 737 Max 8 arrives at Tenerife South Airport in the Canary Islands from Manchester, UK, in January 2019. (Photo: Flickr: Creative Commons (BY-SA) by HawkeyeUK)
A TUI Boeing 737 Max 8 arrives at Tenerife South Airport in the Canary Islands from Manchester, UK, in January 2019. (Photo: Flickr: Creative Commons (BY-SA) by HawkeyeUK)

The European Union Aviation Safety Agency intends to move away from the established practice of relying on the FAA for the certification of U.S. aircraft and products, and said it will assert a more independent role in clearing their airworthiness. The new practice emerges as a result of the “many lessons learned” from the fatal crashes of Boeing 737 Max aircraft in October 2018 and March 2019 and the model’s subsequent worldwide grounding, noted EASA executive director Patrick Ky. Speaking to the European Parliament's transport committee on Monday, Ky said a bilateral safety agreement between the EU and the U.S. in place since May 2011 resulted in progressively less involvement of EASA on FAA-approved projects.


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