Boeing 737 Max Returns To US Skies With First Commercial Flight

Boeing 737 Max Returns To US Skies With First Commercial Flight.

American Airlines flew a Boeing 737 Max with paying passengers from Miami to New York Today, Tuesday, which was the plane’s first commercial flight in U.S. skies since it was grounded after two deadly crashes claimed hundreds of lives. American flight 718 carried 87 passengers on the 172-seat plane, and the return flight from LaGuardia Airport to Miami International Airport held 151 passengers.

Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration approved changes that Boeing made to an automated flight-control system implicated in crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia that killed 346 people in all. In both crashes, the system pushed the nose down repeatedly based on faulty sensor readings, and pilots were unable to regain control.

American plans to make one round trip a day between Miami and New York with Max jets through Jan. 4 before putting the plane on more routes. United Airlines has plans to resume Max flights in February- Southwest Airlines expects to follow in March.

All three airlines say they will give customers the chance to change flights if they are uncomfortable flying on the Max at no extra charge.

The Max was grounded worldwide in March 2019, days after the second crash. Reports by House and Senate committees faulted Boeing and the FAA for failures in the process of certifying the plane. Congressional investigators uncovered internal Boeing documents in which company employees raised safety concerns and bragged about deceiving regulators.

Two 737 Max aircraft recently reported engine problems, forcing them to make emergency landings- one in the US and one in Canada.