The struggle that the two Lion Air pilots waged with their out-of-control 737 Max 8 aircraft last October was both tenacious and terrifying. A new automated safety feature on the jet designed to prevent stalls instead kept sending the aircraft into a dive. Again and again, the pilots pulled the jet’s nose up, only to have a faulty sensor reverse their actions. For some reason, they couldn’t or didn’t cut off the automation, which ultimately sent the year-old Boeing jet into a steep dive and a crash that would claim 189 lives.
Sunday’s crash of an Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max 8, which killed 157 passengers and crew, seems sadly similar to the Lion Air tragedy: According to the airline, the pilot reported control problems shortly after taking off. The jet crashed soon afterward.
At least five pilots complained to the federal government last fall about problems with the Max 8’s autopilot system during the ascent after takeoff, The Dallas Morning News reported. “The fact that this airplane requires such jury rigging to fly is a red flag,” one of the pilots said.
Although the investigation into the Ethiopian Airlines disaster continues, the similarities prompted the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and aviation officials in Canada, China, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia and more than 30 airlines to ground the 737 Max.
The Federal Aviation Administration should do likewise; this jet hasn’t been proved safe to fly. Instead, the agency is allowing Southwest, American Airlines and United to continue to operate the 74 737 Max jets now in service.
The agency has noted corrective actions taken by Boeing since the Lion Air crash. The company is developing a software patch for the jet’s anti-stall system; it is also revising the operating manual to tell pilots how to disengage the autopilot and fly the plane themselves if the system goes haywire. But why should the F.A.A. continue to permit a system prone to going haywire aboard an aircraft?
The airlines had a cozy relationship with the F.A.A. for years. Under the Trump administration, regulators certainly haven’t become tougher. And during the government shutdown, the F.A.A. stopped working on the 737 Max issue for five weeks. There’s no one in charge, either. The job of F.A.A. administrator is one of the many crucial but unoccupied positions in this administration — although Mr. Trump proposed to put his personal pilot at the agency’s controls.
On Tuesday, Mr. Trump tweeted that airliners today are too complex to fly, which would be news to airline pilots. That prompted a call from Boeing’s chief executive, Dennis Muilenburg. Boeing, long among the nation’s largest defense contractors, has always been close with Republican administrations, and the Boeing boss has renewed acquaintances. Although the conversation was not made public, it’s reasonable to assume that Mr. Muilenburg made the case that the 737 Max was both flyable and safe.
In bringing the 737 Max to market, Boeing designed the jet to be similar enough to earlier models so that airlines would not have to substantially retrain their pilots, saving them time and money. But pilots have since complained that the complex new systems in the 737 Max make it functionally a different jet.
Several legislators, including Senators Richard Blumenthal, Mitt Romney and Dianne Feinstein, have demanded that the 737 Max be grounded until any problems have been thoroughly investigated and fixed. “This is the only common sense measure until we have answers & can ensure passenger/crew safety,” Senator Blumenthal tweeted.
So it is. As awful as airline service has become from a passenger standpoint, air travel in the United States has never been as safe as it is today. The airlines and airplane companies such as Boeing have helped make that happen. This is not the time, then, for the F.A.A. to put in jeopardy such an admirable record. Or us.
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Home » Analysis & Comment » Opinion | Ground the Boeing Max 8. There Are Too Many Concerns.
Opinion | Ground the Boeing Max 8. There Are Too Many Concerns.
The struggle that the two Lion Air pilots waged with their out-of-control 737 Max 8 aircraft last October was both tenacious and terrifying. A new automated safety feature on the jet designed to prevent stalls instead kept sending the aircraft into a dive. Again and again, the pilots pulled the jet’s nose up, only to have a faulty sensor reverse their actions. For some reason, they couldn’t or didn’t cut off the automation, which ultimately sent the year-old Boeing jet into a steep dive and a crash that would claim 189 lives.
Sunday’s crash of an Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max 8, which killed 157 passengers and crew, seems sadly similar to the Lion Air tragedy: According to the airline, the pilot reported control problems shortly after taking off. The jet crashed soon afterward.
At least five pilots complained to the federal government last fall about problems with the Max 8’s autopilot system during the ascent after takeoff, The Dallas Morning News reported. “The fact that this airplane requires such jury rigging to fly is a red flag,” one of the pilots said.
Although the investigation into the Ethiopian Airlines disaster continues, the similarities prompted the European Union Aviation Safety Agency and aviation officials in Canada, China, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia and more than 30 airlines to ground the 737 Max.
The Federal Aviation Administration should do likewise; this jet hasn’t been proved safe to fly. Instead, the agency is allowing Southwest, American Airlines and United to continue to operate the 74 737 Max jets now in service.
The agency has noted corrective actions taken by Boeing since the Lion Air crash. The company is developing a software patch for the jet’s anti-stall system; it is also revising the operating manual to tell pilots how to disengage the autopilot and fly the plane themselves if the system goes haywire. But why should the F.A.A. continue to permit a system prone to going haywire aboard an aircraft?
The airlines had a cozy relationship with the F.A.A. for years. Under the Trump administration, regulators certainly haven’t become tougher. And during the government shutdown, the F.A.A. stopped working on the 737 Max issue for five weeks. There’s no one in charge, either. The job of F.A.A. administrator is one of the many crucial but unoccupied positions in this administration — although Mr. Trump proposed to put his personal pilot at the agency’s controls.
On Tuesday, Mr. Trump tweeted that airliners today are too complex to fly, which would be news to airline pilots. That prompted a call from Boeing’s chief executive, Dennis Muilenburg. Boeing, long among the nation’s largest defense contractors, has always been close with Republican administrations, and the Boeing boss has renewed acquaintances. Although the conversation was not made public, it’s reasonable to assume that Mr. Muilenburg made the case that the 737 Max was both flyable and safe.
In bringing the 737 Max to market, Boeing designed the jet to be similar enough to earlier models so that airlines would not have to substantially retrain their pilots, saving them time and money. But pilots have since complained that the complex new systems in the 737 Max make it functionally a different jet.
Several legislators, including Senators Richard Blumenthal, Mitt Romney and Dianne Feinstein, have demanded that the 737 Max be grounded until any problems have been thoroughly investigated and fixed. “This is the only common sense measure until we have answers & can ensure passenger/crew safety,” Senator Blumenthal tweeted.
So it is. As awful as airline service has become from a passenger standpoint, air travel in the United States has never been as safe as it is today. The airlines and airplane companies such as Boeing have helped make that happen. This is not the time, then, for the F.A.A. to put in jeopardy such an admirable record. Or us.
The Times is committed to publishing a diversity of letters to the editor. We’d like to hear what you think about this or any of our articles. Here are some tips. And here’s our email: [email protected].
Follow The New York Times Opinion section on Facebook, Twitter (@NYTopinion) and Instagram.
Source: Read Full Article