Software Update Must Be Approved By The FAA Before 737 MAX Airplanes Can Fly Again

Boeing says it has a software fix for the MCAS system on its 737 MAX airplanes ready to install as soon as it gets the nod from the FAA.

The Seattle Times reports that the company held a news conference Wednesday at its customer facility in Renton, WA. Mike Sinnett, vice president of product strategy and development, gave a report on the planned software update. The update will require the MCAS to receive input from two sensors rather than one, and that it will activate only once instead of repeatedly if the inputs stay at a high value. The power of the system will also be limited, giving the pilot the ability to pull back on the control column hard enough to counteract any automatic nose-down correction the MCAS may apply.

Sinnett said that Boeing will also introduce additional training which has been "provisionally approved". The training will consist of about a half-hour of computer-based work. Since the MAX will perform exactly the same as older 737 models with this new software, no simulator training will be required, he said.

However, Sinnett stopped short of saying that the original MCAS design was flawed. He said that the software upgrades will make the system "more robust."

Boeing said that it will only take a day or so to get the software installed and operational once it is approved by the FAA, which must also, along with the aviation authorities in other countries, determine when to life the grounding of the 737 MAX line.

(Image from file)

FMI: Source report