- The FAA expects the Boeing 737 Max certification flight to take place in the next few weeks, according to a Reuters report.
- The certification flight is the among the last major hurdles Boeing faces to get the grounded jet cleared to fly again.
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The FAA expects the Boeing 737 Max's certification flight — among the last major steps in the certification process — to happen in the next few weeks, FAA chief Steve Dickson said on Thursday.
Dickson said that once the certification flight takes place, there would be "fewer variables" affecting the timeline of the plane's return to service. Reuters first reported Dickson's statements.
He also said that the FAA had completed its audit of the software fix on the troubled plane, and that while there may be some "adjustments" needed, there would not be a significant delay.
Dickson's statements came at an airline industry event in London.
However, Bloomberg reported that the adjustments included a required fix to a warning light, which indicates when the plane's trim system is malfunctioning.
During his remarks at the event, Dickson also said that international air safety regulators were likely to agree on the changes made to certify the plane.
"On the design approval, from everything that I have seen I think we'll have very solid alignment," he said.
Boeing said last month that it did not expect the plane to fly before "mid-2020." However, the FAA said that certification could come sooner than that.
Airlines have pulled the Max from their schedules until early-summer, and have been forced to cancel multiple flights and change growth plans based on the lowered capacity.
The plane's recertification would mark an end to a disastrous saga at Boeing, even as it will likely continue working to convince passengers that the plane is safe, and persuade potential customers that it is still a good product.
The 737 Max has been grounded since March 2019, following the second of two fatal crashes. 346 people were killed.
Both crashes have been linked to a faulty automated flight system known as the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System, or MCAS. The system was designed to automatically adjust the plane's trim under certain conditions to make the plane handle like older versions of the 737, the 737 Next Generation, or NG.
The ongoing grounding has contributed to Boeing's worst year in decades, and the firing of CEO Dennis Muilenburg. Boeing suspended production of the plane last month, leading to a rippling wave of layoffs at suppliers around the US and globally.