Was Being Ferried From Florida to California For Storage

A Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 MAX that was being ferried from Florida to California for storage while the planes are grounded was forced to return to Orlando International Airport shortly after takeoff due to an engine problem.

The Seattle Times reports that the plane departed KMCO at about 2:50 p.m. local time Tuesday. There were no passengers on board. Shortly after takeoff, the pilot of the airplane reported an issue with the right engine and declared and emergency, returning to the airport and landing safely.

Southwest has moved at least 15 of its 34 737 MAX airplanes to a storage facility in Victorville, CA, where they will remain while Boeing and the FAA work through issues with the planes' MCAS system and develop a software solution. Two of the airplanes have been involved in fatal accidents in the past six months; on in Indonesia and one in Ethiopia. Neither of those accidents is thought to have involved a problem with an engine.

The FAA's method for certification has come under Congressional scrutiny due to the accidents.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report