The "New York Times" reports that the Boeing 737 Max has been subjected to extensive technical problems, among other things, referring to a Boeing employee. Accordingly, there are problems with the wiring, with the help of which the rear of the machine is controlled.
The 737 Max crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia plunged Boeing into a deep crisis. The aircraft type is still banned from take-off. The company is suspected of rushing the accident-hunters onto the market and neglecting safety. Boeing rejects this, but has admitted various errors and breakdowns.
The 737-Max debacle is a great burden for the manufacturer, there have already been immense costs, major damage to the image, several investigations and high legal risks. CEO Dennis Muilenburg resigned in the wake of the crisis.
Can the 737 Max fly again in the spring?
Boeing informed the US aviation authority FAA of the new potential security vulnerability in December, the New York Times reports. The possible implementation had already been discussed during a conference call last week.
Specifically, the aircraft manufacturer is currently checking whether two of the cables are possibly too close to one another and thereby cause a short circuit. In the worst case, a short circuit in this area could cause the aircraft to crash if the pilots do not react in time. It is not yet clear whether this scenario can really occur. If so, wire bundles would have to be separated in the approximately 800 jets. According to Boeing, this would be a relatively easy conversion.
The problem could possibly also occur with the previous model of the Boeing 737 NG, of which 6800 are currently in use. According to the Boeing engineer, it is not uncommon for such problems to be found and fixed.
Insiders speculate that the 737 Max could fly again in the spring. The schedule could also be met with the new problems. According to Boeing, it only takes two hours per machine to disconnect the affected cables using a clamp. "We identified these issues as part of a rigorous review process and work closely with the FAA," said a Boeing spokesman. However, it is still unclear whether a design adjustment will be necessary at all.
The MCAS control program, which was developed for the 737 Max, is at the center of the crisis anyway and, according to research reports, played a decisive role in the crashes. (Read more about this here.) Boeing had already promised to fix the MCAS problems by software update after the accident in Indonesia. A little later there was a crash in Ethiopia. The update still has no FAA approval.
