Boeing Moves Closer To 737MAX-7/-10 FAA Certification

Boeing is making progress towards Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification approval for two variants of the 737 Max series: the 737-7 and the 737-10. The 737-7 certification is expected by the end of the year or as early as next month, with deliveries to launch customer Southwest Airlines planned for early 2024. The 737-10 is about 70% through fulfilling FAA requirements for type inspection authorization (TIA), which marks the start of flight testing. Assuming TIA is granted by year-end and testing proceeds smoothly, deliveries for the 737-10 are anticipated to begin in the first quarter of 2025.

Boeing has provided general certification timeline outlines but emphasized that the situation remains fluid due to evolving certification standards. Boeing executives, during a recent earnings call, indicated no changes to the timelines and stated that the FAA has the flexibility to determine the exact dates. Outstanding requirements mainly involve design assurance documentation and system safety assessments with human factors assumptions. The scope of 737-10 certification has expanded due to several changes introduced for retrofitting fleet-wide.

In September, the FAA granted an exemption for 737-7 certification without new yaw-damper software, while the 737-10 will include this software and a new angle-of-attack (AOA) monitoring system, to be retrofitted at Boeing's expense.

A fifth production 737-10, intended for United Airlines , is participating in Boeing's ecoDemonstrator technology demonstration program, while other 737-10 test aircraft are currently inactive. Additionally, the only known active 737 MAX family test aircraft, a 737-8, is involved in systems testing, with its specific tasks, such as the development of the new yaw damper software, not disclosed.