U.S. Congress Appropriations Deal Eases Boeing's 737 Max Certification Burden

Appropriations Deal Eases Boeing's Max Cert Burden

An amendment to the U.S. Congress's Appropriations Bill does away with a requirement for a crew alerting system upgrade for the Max 7 and Max 10 airliners.

Boeing 737 Max 10 airliner on airport ramp — Boeing now has more time to complete certification requirements for the Max 10 airliner. (Image: AIN)

By Charles Alcock • Managing Editor

December 20, 2022

The U.S. Congress has eased Boeing’s path to certifying its 737 Max 7 and Max 10 airliners by including an amendment in the 2023 Appropriations Bill that avoids the need for the manufacturer to implement a crew alerting system upgrade, which had been required under The Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act passed in 2020. The amendment includes requirements to retrofit more specific safety enhancements but gives Boeing up to three years after the Max 10 is certified to make these modifications.

Retrofits, which would be done at the manufacturer’s expense for airlines, would also apply to the Max 7 and the already-certified Max 8 and 9 models. They include an additional means to monitor the aircraft’s angle of attack and a switch that would allow pilots to deactivate the stick shaker in the event of an erroneous stall warning.

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