Boeing is making progress on a redesign of the 737 MAX-7 engine nacelle, to permit its FAA certification. But more delays seem inevitable.
The smallest member of the 737 MAX family is also the one with the smallest number of orders. Unless something changes radically, the predominant user, once it enters service, will be Southwest Airlines.
Rendering of a Southwest 737 MAX-7 (nearest) and a 737-700. Image: BoeingWork on the certification of Boeing’s 737 MAX-7 was underway when the two 737 MAX-8 crashes, in 2018 and 2019, caused the type’s grounding. Testing and certification work on the aircraft essentially came to a halt, as Boeing and the FAA radically changed the ways they work with each other.
Engine Anti-Ice IssueMore recently, we have seen that the certification of both the 737 MAX-7 and MAX-10 has been hit by a new issue, involving the engine nacelles. If flight crews use the engine anti-ice system under certain specific conditions (altitude and air temperature), the..