The Problem Boeing Ran Into After Designing The 737 MAX For Bigger Engines

Simple Flying ^ | 2025 | Aaron Spray

[CondoleezzaProtege]

In 2003, former McDonnell Douglas executive Harry Stonecipher became the CEO of Boeing and described the company as "run like a business rather than a great engineering firm."

Stonecipher made the fateful decision to reject proposals to design a clean-sheet airplane to replace the aging Boeing 727, 737, and 757.

By 2011, Boeing's aging 737 was losing to rival Airbus's A320neo, but instead of a new aircraft, the decision was made to upgrade the 737 NG to the 737 MAX. This would allow it to stay within the FAA's original type certification and operate with the same flying characteristics. It was also designed to avoid retraining pilots and upgrading training manuals.

But the forward and high placement of engines resulted in the 737 MAX encountering stall problems in 2015. To safeguard the original type certification, Boeing installed the now-infamous Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) software without informing the FAA or describing it in the pilot's manual.

Unfortunately, it took not one, but two crashes for the faulty MCAS issues to be identified. Even after the first crash, Boeing was in denial, saying "our assurance that the 737 MAX is as safe as any airplane that has ever flown the skies." Today, that may be true now that issues with the Boeing MAX have been ironed out. But it was not true then.

[wjcsux]

“I’m not surprised they’re having serious troubles now. Too bad, really, but McDonnell-Douglas owns the problems.”
That’s what happens when you let a has been company take over management of the most successful airline manufacturer.

[OldArmy52]

Boeing could save money by getting rid of all their American citizen (white) engineers and staff and contracting out to an India contractor.

Great idea!

[PAR35]

Boeing certainly knows how to discourage whistle blowing.

[PAR35]

Moving what was left of Boeing management to Chicago.

But Chicago had an Opera house. Dallas didn't. (Dallas learned from that. They built an Opera house and now have opera.)

[DennisR]

Please elaborate, because Boeing will deliver hundreds of these this year. Is this what you meant by “dropping like flies”?

[ChuckHam]

I was being sarcastic. The aircraft is very reliable.

[Robert A Cook PE]

Thank you for the details.
“But who watches the custodians? “

[DennisR]

Whoops! I should have known!

[No Party Affiliation]

Speaking of gaslighting, nice regurgitation of talking points. How many pilots that went for training on the 737 MAX8 were involved in crashes?

[CondoleezzaProtege]

As per American Airlines pilots’ union. Boeing ignored even THEIR (the American pilots’) suggestions for improvements.

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“Shame on you… we’re going to call you out on it,” Tajer said of Boeing Thursday ahead of a Federal Aviation Administration meeting of international aviation regulators in Fort Worth, Texas. “That’s a poisoned, diseased philosophy.”

Tajer also told CNN American Airlines pilots made several suggestions on how to improve the safety of the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) in a meeting with Boeing in November 2018, a few weeks after the October crash of Lion Air flight JT 610 in Indonesia and months before the Ethiopian Airlines crash in March.

When asked if the Ethiopian crash might have been prevented if Boeing had taken action on the pilots’ suggestions, Tajer said, “I think that’s a fair conclusion.”

https://www.cnn.com/2019/05/23/business/american-airlines-boeing-pilots-union