FAA decides it trusts Boeing enough to certify the safety of its own planes again
(2025/09/29)
- Reference: 1759176850
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2025/09/29/faa_decides_it_trusts_boeing/
- Source link:
After years of relying on the FAA to certify its jets as airworthy, Boeing is finally going to be allowed to do so itself – sometimes.
The US Federal Aviation Administration [1]said on Friday that it was granting Boeing "limited delegation" to issue its own airworthiness certificates for the 737 Max and 787 aircraft, which it hasn't been able to do since 2019 and 2022, respectively.
Boeing lost its ability to certify the airworthiness of the 737 Max after a [2]pair of crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. The agency took 787 certification out of Boeing's hands due to what the FAA said was "production quality issues."
[3]
As we've previously reported, the 787's problems include things like a need to be [4]power cycled every 51 days due to faulty software, [5]easy hackability of plane systems, [6]melting batteries , and other issues pointed out before the FAA took control of its airworthiness. Not that things have become much better for the 787 since the FAA assumed responsibility for its airworthiness, mind you: Since then Boeing has [7]delayed 787 deliveries due to faulty horizontal stabilizers, and a whistleblower has argued that [8]chronic fuselage gaps have left the entire 787 fleet in a position to fly apart at the seams.
[9]
[10]
The 737 Max has continued to have problems since the FAA took over inspection of that Boeing model, too. It was a 737 Max 9 which [11]lost a door plug in flight last year. The FAA grounded 737 Max aircraft following the door plug incident, after which United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, the only carriers with Max 9s in their fleets, discovered a [12]chronic problem of loose bolts on the questionably-airworthy aircraft. A Congressional look at internal Boeing documents found emails from engineers [13]saying in 2020 that they wouldn't put their own families on the 737 Max over safety concerns.
The FAA gave Boeing [14]90 days to fix a number of safety shortcomings it flagged in a February 2024 report it published following the door plug blowout. It's well past that 90-day deadline, but the FAA now says that they're at least partially content with improvements the company has made since it started scrutinizing the firm, again, last year.
Airworthiness certification custody sharing
"The FAA will only allow this step forward because we are confident it can be done safely," the agency said in its Friday press release – but being done safely still means Boeing will be subject to FAA scrutiny.
[15]
Per the Administration, Boeing will only get to issue airworthiness certificates every other week, with the FAA handling things the other half of the time. Far from being simply an acknowledgement that Boeing is doing better, the FAA is going to use its every-other-week model to spend more time keeping a watchful eye on the assembly process.
"By alternating weeks, we are creating more opportunities to directly observe how Boeing is carrying out this responsibility in practice," an FAA spokesperson told The Register.
[16]Boeing going backwards as production's slowing and woes keep flowing
[17]Boeing offloads some software businesses to private equiteer Thoma Bravo
[18]Boeing's Starliner may fly again, pending fixes to literally everything
[19]Report claims FAA ignores most whistleblower complaints
"The FAA's role is to provide oversight of Boeing's performance, ensuring that it issues certificates only when airplanes meet all applicable safety requirements," the spokesperson continued. "Alternating weeks strengthens our ability to identify trends, intervene early if concerns arise, and maintain confidence in the overall safety of Boeing's system."
The FAA didn't tell us whether the agreement was temporary, or how long it might take Boeing to earn its complete trust and confidence in its ability to issue reliable airworthiness certificates. Boeing didn't respond to questions for this story. ®
Get our [20]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/faa-statement-boeing-airworthiness-certificates
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/15/boeing_might_be_criminally_prosecuted/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/15/boeing_might_be_criminally_prosecuted/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2019/08/08/boeing_787_software_bug_hack/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2014/01/16/us_safety_authorities_on_boeings_case_787_batteries_fail/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2023/06/07/boeing_787_production_defect/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2024/04/17/boeing_whistleblower_fuselage_gaps/
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/08/boeing_737_max_9_airplanes/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/09/united_alaska_737_loose_bolts/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2020/01/11/boeing_737_max_emails/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/28/faa_gives_boeing_90_days/
[15] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/15/boeing_airbus_commercial_deliveries_2024/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/23/boeing_thoma_bravo_software_sale/
[18] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/28/boeing_starliner_fixes/
[19] https://www.theregister.com/2024/12/31/faa_whistleblower_complaints/
[20] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
The US Federal Aviation Administration [1]said on Friday that it was granting Boeing "limited delegation" to issue its own airworthiness certificates for the 737 Max and 787 aircraft, which it hasn't been able to do since 2019 and 2022, respectively.
Boeing lost its ability to certify the airworthiness of the 737 Max after a [2]pair of crashes in 2018 and 2019 that killed 346 people. The agency took 787 certification out of Boeing's hands due to what the FAA said was "production quality issues."
[3]
As we've previously reported, the 787's problems include things like a need to be [4]power cycled every 51 days due to faulty software, [5]easy hackability of plane systems, [6]melting batteries , and other issues pointed out before the FAA took control of its airworthiness. Not that things have become much better for the 787 since the FAA assumed responsibility for its airworthiness, mind you: Since then Boeing has [7]delayed 787 deliveries due to faulty horizontal stabilizers, and a whistleblower has argued that [8]chronic fuselage gaps have left the entire 787 fleet in a position to fly apart at the seams.
[9]
[10]
The 737 Max has continued to have problems since the FAA took over inspection of that Boeing model, too. It was a 737 Max 9 which [11]lost a door plug in flight last year. The FAA grounded 737 Max aircraft following the door plug incident, after which United Airlines and Alaska Airlines, the only carriers with Max 9s in their fleets, discovered a [12]chronic problem of loose bolts on the questionably-airworthy aircraft. A Congressional look at internal Boeing documents found emails from engineers [13]saying in 2020 that they wouldn't put their own families on the 737 Max over safety concerns.
The FAA gave Boeing [14]90 days to fix a number of safety shortcomings it flagged in a February 2024 report it published following the door plug blowout. It's well past that 90-day deadline, but the FAA now says that they're at least partially content with improvements the company has made since it started scrutinizing the firm, again, last year.
Airworthiness certification custody sharing
"The FAA will only allow this step forward because we are confident it can be done safely," the agency said in its Friday press release – but being done safely still means Boeing will be subject to FAA scrutiny.
[15]
Per the Administration, Boeing will only get to issue airworthiness certificates every other week, with the FAA handling things the other half of the time. Far from being simply an acknowledgement that Boeing is doing better, the FAA is going to use its every-other-week model to spend more time keeping a watchful eye on the assembly process.
"By alternating weeks, we are creating more opportunities to directly observe how Boeing is carrying out this responsibility in practice," an FAA spokesperson told The Register.
[16]Boeing going backwards as production's slowing and woes keep flowing
[17]Boeing offloads some software businesses to private equiteer Thoma Bravo
[18]Boeing's Starliner may fly again, pending fixes to literally everything
[19]Report claims FAA ignores most whistleblower complaints
"The FAA's role is to provide oversight of Boeing's performance, ensuring that it issues certificates only when airplanes meet all applicable safety requirements," the spokesperson continued. "Alternating weeks strengthens our ability to identify trends, intervene early if concerns arise, and maintain confidence in the overall safety of Boeing's system."
The FAA didn't tell us whether the agreement was temporary, or how long it might take Boeing to earn its complete trust and confidence in its ability to issue reliable airworthiness certificates. Boeing didn't respond to questions for this story. ®
Get our [20]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.faa.gov/newsroom/faa-statement-boeing-airworthiness-certificates
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/15/boeing_might_be_criminally_prosecuted/
[3] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=2&c=2aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D2%26raptor%3Dcondor%26pos%3Dtop%26test%3D0
[4] https://www.theregister.com/2024/05/15/boeing_might_be_criminally_prosecuted/
[5] https://www.theregister.com/2019/08/08/boeing_787_software_bug_hack/
[6] https://www.theregister.com/2014/01/16/us_safety_authorities_on_boeings_case_787_batteries_fail/
[7] https://www.theregister.com/2023/06/07/boeing_787_production_defect/
[8] https://www.theregister.com/2024/04/17/boeing_whistleblower_fuselage_gaps/
[9] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[10] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=3&c=33aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D3%26raptor%3Deagle%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[11] https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/08/boeing_737_max_9_airplanes/
[12] https://www.theregister.com/2024/01/09/united_alaska_737_loose_bolts/
[13] https://www.theregister.com/2020/01/11/boeing_737_max_emails/
[14] https://www.theregister.com/2024/02/28/faa_gives_boeing_90_days/
[15] https://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?co=1&iu=/6978/reg_onprem/publicsector&sz=300x50%7C300x100%7C300x250%7C300x251%7C300x252%7C300x600%7C300x601&tile=4&c=44aNsBdEKZSqlqcxxs6x9hqQAAAkM&t=ct%3Dns%26unitnum%3D4%26raptor%3Dfalcon%26pos%3Dmid%26test%3D0
[16] https://www.theregister.com/2025/01/15/boeing_airbus_commercial_deliveries_2024/
[17] https://www.theregister.com/2025/04/23/boeing_thoma_bravo_software_sale/
[18] https://www.theregister.com/2025/03/28/boeing_starliner_fixes/
[19] https://www.theregister.com/2024/12/31/faa_whistleblower_complaints/
[20] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Ridiculous
Fruit and Nutcase
How long before the FAA allows SpaceX [Musk] to self-certifiy launch clearances
I doubt it will matter
DS999
Even if the US decides to let them self regulate, other bodies outside the US aren't likely to do so anytime soon. Though if Trump finds out about that he'll have another tariff tantrum I suppose.
Will China re-certify Boeing self-certified aircraft?
VoiceOfTruth
Cast your minds back. China grounded the 737 Max, just as the USA was saying "it is safe". The FAA resisted to the hilt, backing Boeing and its lack of safety culture. Cos it's American.
Why would China accept the word of Boeing? It lied end misled before, it can do it again. It could even be moot if China doesn't buy any more Boeings.
Brown envelopes
Paul Dx
Boeing have obviously got the brown envelopes to the right person
Re: Brown envelopes
IGotOut
More like a vat of orange tan was offered.
sanmigueelbeer
That is one last hurdle for DOGE to shut down FAA.
The money save for not upgrading the outdated flight control systems could go and complete the fence.
What could possibly go wrong?
Make American (Business) Great Again!
Ridiculous
How does the government get to tell this proud, patriotic, grate American company what it can do ?