- The FAA has granted Boeing 737 MAX 7 type certification after an eight-year process
- Approximately 30 completed MAX 7 aircraft are awaiting delivery
- Southwest Airlines has 256 MAX 7 aircraft on firm order
- The certification involved 441 test flights and 686 hours of testing
- The MAX 7 approval has cleared the certification path for the MAX 10
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has finally approved the Boeing 737 MAX 7 for commercial service Monday, ending an eight-year certification campaign.
The amended type certificate, granted on August 3, confirms that the Boeing 737 MAX 7 design meets federal requirements, allowing the planemaker to freely manufacture and delivery the aircraft based on that design. Boeing has stated that preparations for the first deliveries are in progress. According to aviation analytics firm Cirium, approximately 30 completed MAX 7 aircraft are awaiting delivery. The MAX 7 first flew in March 2018, and Boeing expected airlines to begin using it the following year, but that timetable fell apart after two crashes involving the larger MAX 8 killed 346 people in Indonesia and Ethiopia.
To secure approval, Boeing was asked to updated the MAX’s flight-control software, improve the warnings shown to pilots, and redesign the engine anti-ice system, which prevents ice from forming around the engine opening. Aviation Week reported that the work included 441 test flights totaling 686 hours, along with 349 hours of ground testing. Southwest Airlines, the launch customer and by far the dominant buyer, has 256 aircraft on firm order. The carrier intends to use them to replace its fleet of over 270 737-700NGs, some of which are over 20 years old. The MAX 7 certification has also resolved design and compliance questions shared with the MAX 10, Boeing’s largest MAX variant.
Stephanie Pope shared: “We have learned important lessons that we are already applying to the 737-10.”
The FAA shared: “Following almost a decade of extensive review, the FAA has issued an amended type certificate and updated Production Limitation Record for the Boeing 737 MAX-7.”
