Boeing Completes Max Software Update, Works Toward FAA Clearance

(Bloomberg) -- Boeing Co. has finished an update for software linked to two fatal 737 Max crashes and is addressing questions from regulators before submitting the fix for final approval.

• The Max has flown 360 hours on 207 flights with the updated software, Boeing said in a statement Thursday.

Key Insights

• The announcement is a sign of progress for Boeing’s efforts to get its best-selling jetliner back in the sky after a grounding that has already lasted more than two months. Test flights are permitted during the grounding.
• Boeing is providing more information to address questions from the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration about pilot interaction with the Max’s controls and displays in different scenarios.
• In a separate statement, the FAA said Boeing hasn’t submitted the complete package required to consider restoring the plane to service. Once that package is finalized, the FAA will schedule a flight test of the 737 Max’s new software by its pilots, the agency said.

Market Reaction

• Boeing rose to session highs on the news and climbed 2.6% to $354.48 at 3:37 p.m. in New York. Since the March 10 crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet, the shares slid 18% through Wednesday, the biggest decline on the Dow Jones Industrial Average.

Get More

• Details on next week’s 737 Max meetings: one with regulators from around the world, and a separate gathering of airlines.
• The FAA sees an uncertain timeline for its review of the 737 Max software update
• Boeing said it had also developed enhanced training and education materials that are under review by the FAA, foreign regulators and airlines.

--With assistance from Alan Levin and Tony Robinson.

To contact the reporter on this story: Brendan Case in Dallas at bcase4@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Brendan Case at bcase4@bloomberg.net, Richard Clough

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