FAA administrator tells team to 'take whatever time needed' on 737 MAX: memo

Source: Reuters

Business News
November 15, 2019 / 1:43 PM / Updated an hour ago

David Shepardson, Eric M. Johnson

3 Min Read

WASHINGTON/SEATTLE (Reuters) - U.S. Federal Aviation Administrator Steve Dickson told his team to “take whatever time is needed” in their review of Boeing Co’s (BA.N) 737 MAX, reiterating that the path to approval is “not guided by a calendar or schedule,” according to a Nov. 14 memo and video message reviewed by Reuters.

The comments came days after Boeing said it expected the FAA certify the 737 MAX, issue an airworthiness directive and unground the plane in mid-December - a timetable that sent the planemaker’s stock price soaring on Monday.

Boeing also acknowledged on Monday that it would not win approval for training changes until January, pushing back the return of flights. Just three days earlier, Boeing abruptly scrapped the announcement it had planned on the MAX.

U.S. officials have privately said this week that Boeing’s timetable was aggressive - if not unrealistic - and was not cleared in advance by regulators.

Read more: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-boeing-737max/faa-administrator-tells-team-to-take-whatever-time-needed-on-737-max-memo-idUSKBN1XP22U?il=0

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