By Andy Pasztor and Andrew Tangel
European air-safety regulators have officially shelved the idea
of lifting the grounding of Boeing Co.'s 737 MAX jets
simultaneously with the U.S., according to people familiar with the
details, a significant setback to American regulators' desire for a
coordinated global response.
The final decision, these people said, was communicated last
week by Patrick Ky, head of the European Union Aviation Safety
Agency, to Earl Lawrence and Ali Bahrami, the two senior Federal
Aviation Administration officials leading the U.S. response to the
MAX crisis.
Results of the meeting, which hasn't been reported before, are
both symbolic and practical. Symbolically, they undercut the FAA's
stature among its international counterparts when it comes to
certifying aircraft as safe. In a more concrete sense, the results
undermine the FAA's goal of securing the broadest possible global
cooperation to vouch for the safety of the currently grounded
fleet.
Boeing's stock fell nearly 4% on Monday, declining for the third
straight session as analysts downgraded the shares amid increasing
scrutiny from regulators and uncertainty about the timing of the
MAX's return.
After months of roller-coaster negotiations -- with changing
deadlines and shifting commitments by EASA -- FAA leaders have been
told their European counterparts will take perhaps as much as four
weeks longer than the U.S. to allow the MAX back into service,
these people said.
EASA so far has coordinated its efforts with FAA testing and
analyses of software fixes and flight-control computer changes.
That is typical, as air regulators normally follow the lead of
whatever country initially approved a plane for service. But going
forward, a number of these people said, European regulators intend
to conduct some of their own independent simulator tests. Mr. Ky,
they said, also told the FAA officials he will need extra time to
inform and gain support from European legislators and national
aviation authorities within the EU.
An EASA spokeswoman declined to comment on the European-U.S.
rupture, except to say "we would like to see the MAX return to
service as soon as possible, but only once we are confident it is
safe."
An FAA spokesman said the agency, which hasn't set a deadline
for getting the fleet back in the air, "has a transparent and
collaborative relationship with other civil-aviation
authorities."
The agency also said "each government will make its own decision
to return the aircraft to service based on a thorough safety
assessment."
A Boeing spokesman said it is cooperating with the FAA-led
effort, but " each of the regulators will determine on their own
timeline when they will certify the MAX."
Beyond the regulatory and operational headaches if MAX jetliners
initially can fly only on one side of the Atlantic, EASA's decision
to opt out of the coalition might have broader impact. Regulators
in China and other fast-growing aviation markets, industry
officials said, will be assessing whether they should follow the
lead of the FAA or EASA.
"It's going to take a very deft hand at the top of the FAA to
show the necessary respect for [EASA's] independence, while setting
the stage for future enhanced cooperation," former FAA chief Marion
Blakey said in an interview.
The EASA pullout adds to challenges facing Boeing, MAX operators
and passengers. Boeing is considering whether to further cut, or
even temporarily halt, production as finished planes pile up and
the company is unable to deliver them to customers. Technical
issues and other problems have resulted in months of delays for FAA
permission to resume MAX flights.
For airlines, Europe's stance might complicate plans to reassure
customers if the FAA gives the green light but a major world
regulator doesn't fully and promptly agree the MAX is safe to
fly.
If EASA doesn't certify the planes at the same time as the U.S.,
the FAA will be ready to act and "I've been told by at least one of
the U.S. airlines at that point, they would fly," said Rep. Peter
DeFazio of Oregon, Democratic chairman of a House committee
scheduled to question Dennis Muilenburg, Boeing's chief executive,
later this month.
The EU's decision comes as Boeing is getting ready to turn over
to the FAA its final package of MAX software fixes, according to
one of the people familiar with the discussions. It could come as
early as this week or next, this person said, though previous
deadlines have slipped repeatedly and the situation remains
fluid.
At the same time, friction between the FAA and the plane maker
has escalated as a result of the recent public release of messages
between two Boeing pilots, apparently flagging safety concerns over
an automated flight-control system called MCAS. Agency leaders
blame Boeing for failing to promptly turn over to them messages;
problems with the system under discussion subsequently led to two
fatal MAX crashes that took a total of 346 lives in less than five
months. Boeing has said the company didn't believe it was
appropriate to share the documents with the FAA sooner because of a
continuing criminal investigation.
EASA's latest strategy comes at a precarious time for Boeing, as
it grapples with stepped-up congressional criticism over the memos,
a sharp drop in its share price and added uncertainty about the
timing of approvals to return the planes to the skies.
Internal FAA estimates have the agency issuing a directive
lifting the grounding across the U.S. by year-end. Pilot training,
maintenance and other required preparations by airlines to resume
carrying passengers are expected to stretch over a number of
additional weeks. U.S. carriers have removed the jets from their
schedules until after the holiday season. The union representing
pilots at Southwest Airlines Co., the largest MAX operator, has
said the planes aren't likely to return until February at the
earliest.
Based on EASA's projection, the agency wouldn't issue a
directive ungrounding the jets until January, and airlines and
union officials have said the bulk of the European fleet might not
fly until early spring.
Canadian and Brazilian authorities are expected to unground the
planes in conjunction with the FAA, though Canadian regulators have
signaled they are likely to mandate extra simulator training in
addition to the nonsimulator training the FAA is expected to
mandate.
Write to Andy Pasztor at andy.pasztor@wsj.com and Andrew Tangel
at Andrew.Tangel@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
October 21, 2019 18:42 ET (22:42 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2019 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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