Boeing has passed another milestone along its recovery path, with the Federal Aviation Administration saying that on 29 September it will return to the manufacturer authority to issue some 737 Max and 787 airworthiness certificates.
The FAA grants aerospace manufacturers authority to issue those documents and to perform other self-certification work under the regulator’s Organisation Delegation Authorisation (ODA) programme.
The FAA had stripped Boeing’s authority to grant 737 Max airworthiness certificates in November 2019, when the 737 Max was grounded and amid criticism about Boeing’s ODA work related to the Max’s type certificate.
In February 2022 the FAA likewise prohibited Boeing from issuing 787 airworthiness certificates in response to production quality concerns.
Airworthiness certificates are aircraft-specific and grant authorisation for each aircraft to be flown.
“The FAA will allow limited delegation to Boeing for issuing airworthiness certificates for some 737 Max and 787 airplanes” starting 29 September, the FAA said on 26 September.
“The FAA will only allow this step forward because we are confident it can be done safely. This decision follows a thorough review of Boeing’s ongoing production quality,” adds the regulator. “The FAA will continue to maintain direct and rigorous oversight of Boeing’s production processes.”
Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The FAA says it and Boeing will share the work starting on 29 September by issuing 737 Max and 787 airworthiness certificates on “alternating weeks”.
Allowing Boeing to take back some of that responsibility will free up FAA resources, the agency says. More inspectors will available for overseeing Boeing’s “critical assembly stages, examining trends, ensuring Boeing mechanics are performing work to approved type design and engineering requirements, and assessing all activities for Boeing’s continuous improvement of its Safety Management System”.
The move comes after the FAA in May renewed Boeing’s ODA programme for three years, through 1 June 2028.
