By Andy Pasztor and Andrew Tangel
Federal aviation regulators are considering mandatory
flight-simulator training before U.S. pilots can operate Boeing
Co.'s 737 MAX jets again, according to government and industry
officials familiar with the deliberations, a change that would
repudiate one of the plane maker's longstanding arguments.
The Federal Aviation Administration months ago rejected the idea
-- which would entail extra costs and delays for airlines -- as
unnecessary. But in recent weeks, these officials said, requiring
such training before returning the grounded U.S. MAX fleet to the
air has gained momentum among agency and industry safety
experts.
"The deliberations appear headed for a much different direction
than before," according to one of the officials, who described
increased FAA emphasis on the topic.
The FAA's formal decision isn't expected until February or
later, and the situation remains fluid. An agency spokeswoman
declined to comment on specifics, saying more analysis and testing
is required.
"The FAA does not have a timeline for this process," she said.
"And at this point our primary concern is ensuring a complete and
thorough review of the aircraft."
A Boeing spokesman said: "We are thoroughly evaluating all
aspects of a safe return to service including pilot training,
procedures and checklists." He added that Boeing will follow the
recommendations of regulators world-wide and its priority is
supplying any information they seek.
Boeing has long maintained 737 MAX pilots don't need
supplemental simulator training beyond what pilots receive to fly
other 737 models, a stance that many FAA officials now regard with
increasing skepticism, according to the officials.
The FAA's changed outlook on simulator training has arisen
partly because Boeing and regulators are proposing rewriting some
emergency checklists for pilots and creating some new ones,
according to some of these officials.
In addition, one of these officials said, the FAA expects
certain cockpit alert lights to be updated so they can notify crews
of potential problems with an automated stall-prevention feature
called MCAS. Misfires of that system led to two fatal MAX nosedives
in less than five months, taking 346 lives and resulting in global
grounding of the planes in March.
Simulator training typically is used to ensure flight crews
understand and can respond appropriately to numerous changes in
emergency procedures or alerts.
Since at least early fall, regulators in Europe, Canada and some
Asian markets have signaled they are leaning toward mandating extra
simulator training as part of their independent reviews of the
MAX's safety.
The current tentative timeline projects FAA approval of an
ungrounding order around March, after a group of international
aviators -- called the Joint Operational Evaluation Board -- is
slated to issue comprehensive training recommendations. After that,
it would take weeks to inspect the idled planes, complete required
maintenance tasks, brief foreign authorities and fly demonstration
flights without passengers.
At this point, United Airlines Holdings Inc. has said it is
considering voluntarily implementing additional flight-simulator
sessions for MAX pilots, though no final decision has been made.
The airline has taken the MAX out of its schedules through early
June. Airlines could point to such a requirement in their efforts
to convince the flying public that the beleaguered airliner is
safe, some of the officials said.
Complicating the FAA's decision is an industrywide shortage of
functioning 737 MAX simulators.
In response, the FAA, Boeing and airlines are considering
installing new software in existing 737 NG simulators so they can
better mimic the characteristics of MAX jetliners, according to
these officials.
Meanwhile, agency chief Steve Dickson, a former airline captain
and safety executive, plans to personally test software fixes and
training changes as soon as the end of January or early
February.
A year ago, when the FAA was analyzing earlier versions of MCAS
fixes, Boeing argued strongly against upfront simulator
requirements. The company said in a letter to the agency that
differences between 737 NG and MAX models relating to the MCAS
software "do not affect pilot knowledge, skills, abilities or
flight safety." At the time, FAA and Boeing officials tentatively
agreed on training sessions that aviators could perform by
themselves on tablets or laptop computers.
The correspondence was released in October by the House
Transportation Committee, which continues to investigate safety
problems that have bedeviled the MAX, along with the FAA's
oversight of the plane's initial design and subsequent proposed
fixes.
Separately, a broader internal review of the MAX's design by
Boeing, extending well beyond software questions, has uncovered a
potential safety problem stemming from the location of certain wire
bundles inside the tail.
As reported earlier by The New York Times, the spacing of the
bundles could cause an electrical short circuit resulting in a
possible emergency that would require pilots to respond as quickly
as four seconds to prevent the plane from going into a hazardous
dive, said people familiar with the details. Various other MAX
systems also have been re-examined since Boeing and the FAA in June
revised long-held assumptions about pilot-response times.
An FAA spokesman said the agency will ensure that all safety
related issues identified during the review process are addressed
before the MAX is approved for return to passenger service.
A Boeing spokesman said the company is working closely with
regulators on a robust and thorough certification process that
includes assessing the safety of the wiring bundles. He added it
was premature to say whether this will lead to a design change.
--Alison Sider contributed to this article.
Write to Andy Pasztor at andy.pasztor@wsj.com and Andrew Tangel
at Andrew.Tangel@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
January 05, 2020 17:27 ET (22:27 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2020 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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