Will Follow Simulator Flight By The New FAA Chief

As he prepared to fly a Boeing 737 MAX simulator to evaluate updates to the company's MCAS software, FAA administrator Stephen Dickson said he will personally fly the airplane before allowing it to return to service.

CNBC reports that, in an interview with NBC news in Las Vegas, Dickson said "I’m the final signoff authority in the U.S., and I’m not going to sign off on the aircraft until I would fly it myself.”

Dickson, a former airline pilot, is qualified to fly the 737 MAX. He reiterated for a reporter that he will fly the actual airplane, not just the sim.

Dickson said in an interview earlier this week that he would not approve the 737 MAX for a return to service until he is satisfied that "it's the safest thing out there."

The official process for recertification calls for a test flight that includes one pilot from Boeing and one from the FAA. The plane will be put through a series of checklist maneuvers to evaluate how it will behave in various circumstances. The data will be reviewed, and if the results meet targets set by Boeing and th eFAA, the company will file for recertification.

Dickson is not a test pilot, so he will not be in the cockpit for the evaluation flight. It has not been determined when Dickson will fly the airplane. A Boeing spokesman said that the company will "work to meet the administrator’s requests and we continue to support global regulators as we work to safely return the aircraft to service.”

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report