The Federal Aviation Administration has approved fixes for an electrical problem affecting scores of Boeing's 737 Max jets, addressing an issue the agency said could cause "multiple simultaneous" safety hazards in the cockpit and prevent safe flight and landing.
The company emphasized that the problem is unrelated to the flawed automated system that led to two deadly Max crashes. Airlines could resume flying some of the more than 100 affected planes within days, ending a ban that began last month.
The FAA said in a statement that it is "investigating the origin of the manufacturing issue that led to the electrical grounding problem." It said the agency is also auditing Boeing's process for making minor design changes in its planes.
Boeing said in a statement it "will continue to stay close to our customers as they complete the work to return their airplanes to service."
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That Boeing and its regulator discovered the new safety problem only last month -- and not during a protracted re-examination of the plane's safety after the Max crashes -- has continued to raise questions about oversight and safety.
At a Wednesday congressional hearing, Rep. David Price, D-N.C., pressed FAA administrator Steve Dickson on the agency's oversight. Price said the "ongoing electrical problems since the ungrounding" of Max jets in November were helping to fuel doubts about the agency's certification process and Boeing's response to crashes that killed 346 people. Some of those skeptics would have preferred a permanent grounding of the Max, Price said.
Dickson responded that the Max "is performing as well or better overall than any other airplane out there in the aviation system right now."
He added that the agency is examining the origins of the manufacturing change that led to the latest electrical problem, and "making sure that we run down whether there were any other implications." But, Dickson added, "it looks like a pretty straightforward fix."
The hazard dates to a manufacturing change in early 2019, according to an FAA safety order. Boeing found "a potential weakening of bonds associated with electrical grounding" that could affect the main instrument panel, a standby power unit and a key circuit breaker panel, the agency said. The discovery was made in a new plane that had yet to be delivered, and airlines have not reported experiencing problems.
The manufacturing issues could affect ice-protection systems on the planes' engines and cause other problems in the cockpit, resulting in "loss of critical functions ... which may prevent continued safe flight," according to the FAA safety order.
Fixing the problem requires new attachments meant to eliminate interference with the grounding.
"We expect the work to take a few days per airplane," Boeing Chief Executive Dave Calhoun said last month.
Airlines are beginning to make the needed repairs.
Southwest Airlines, the biggest customer for Boeing 737 jets including the Max, estimates that the work will take two to three days per plane. The airline expects to complete the work on its 32 grounded planes in about three weeks, a spokesman said.
American Airlines, which has 18 planes sidelined by the electrical issue, and United Airlines, with 17 grounded Max jets, said they expect those planes to resume flying in the coming days but were not more specific. Alaska Airlines has four grounded Max jets.
"We expect our Boeing 737 Max aircraft to return to service in the coming days as we complete our inspection process and ensure those aircraft meet our rigorous safety standards," United Airlines said in a statement Thursday about its 17 affected aircraft.
The timing of FAA approval is a boost to both Boeing -- which is preparing to resume cash-generating deliveries of recently built Max jets -- and its airline customers. Airlines can now plan on having the planes to help meet rising demand and expanding flight schedules heading into the peak summer-travel season.
Shares of Boeing Co. closed up 0.8% in New York trading after being up about 4% earlier in Thursday's session.
Information for this article was contributed by Michael Laris of The Washington Post, by staff members of The Associated Press.
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