FAA clears the way for airlines to put Boeing's long-delayed 737 Max 10 into service
Nearly a decade after Boeing unveiled its largest 737 Max jet, the company has cleared a major hurdle in its effort to bring the plane to airlines.
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company → clear → airlines
The Federal Aviation Administration approved the Max 10 for passenger service Tuesday, ending years of delays.
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Administration → approve → delays
The 737 Max 10's certification represents another milestone in Boeing's efforts to restore its reputation and financial footing after years of safety, quality and production challenges.
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certification → represent → challenges
With production approved, the aircraft can now be sold to domestic and foreign carriers.
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aircraft → approve → carriers
Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the certification followed "extensive safety reviews," including thousands of hours of test flights, and called it a major win for American manufacturing.
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certification → say → manufacturing
"To think that it took us almost 10 years to get here.
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it → think → years
We all probably had a little less gray hair 10 years ago," Duffy said during a visit to Boeing's manufacturing plant Tuesday in Everett, Washington.
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Duffy → have → Everett
The Max 10 is an important piece of the company's effort to regain ground in the narrow-body market.
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Max → regain → market
For airlines, the larger plane offers a way to carry more passengers on a single flight, potentially lowering costs per seat.
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plane → offer → seat
For travelers, it could eventually mean more seats on popular routes, though the impact on fares will depend on how airlines deploy the planes and how much competition they face.
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they → mean → competition
Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said during Duffy's visit that the certification "clears the path to deliver an airplane that will set a new standard in commercial aviation."
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that → say → aviation
The Max 10 will typically seat 185-210 passengers, according to Boeing, compared with 175-195 on the Max 9 and 160-180 on the Max 8.
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Max → seat → Max
It caps years of hard work and dedication by many," Pope said.
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Pope → cap → many
"It marks another major milestone in our recovery, and it unlocks a key to our future growth."
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it → mark → growth
The company expects to begin deliveries in 2027.
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company → expect → 2027
The single-aisle jet was introduced at the Paris air show in 2017 to help Boeing compete with rival Airbus.
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Boeing → introduce → Airbus
But technical and regulatory hurdles repeatedly delayed certification.
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hurdles → delay → certification
Boeing's struggles have been particularly acute since two deadly crashes involving the smaller Max 8 killed 346 people in 2018 and 2019 off the coast of Indonesia and in Ethiopia.
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crashes → involve → Ethiopia
In 2024, a panel flew off of an Alaska Airlines Max 9 in midair, renewing scrutiny of Boeing's manufacturing and safety practices.
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panel → fly → practices
The delays have held up a key part of Boeing's business.
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delays → hold → business
More than 30 customers worldwide have ordered 1,555 Max 10s that Boeing has yet to deliver, accounting for more than 30% of its total 737 Max backlog.
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Boeing → order → backlog
Major customers include United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Ryanair.
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customers → include → Airlines
Alaska Airlines joined that list in January, ordering 105 Max 10s, with options for 35 more.
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Airlines → join → 35
The Max 10 is intended to compete with Airbus's A321neo model family, which entered service in 2017.
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which → intend → 2017
The largest A321neo can carry more passengers and fly farther without refueling than the Max 10.
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A321neo → carry → Max
Still, Boeing designed the Max 10 to carry more passengers while burning less fuel than older aircraft — a potentially attractive combination for airlines facing soaring jet fuel costs amid the U.S. war with Iran.
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Boeing → design → Iran
Those rising costs have put added pressure on airlines to control expenses.
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costs → rise → expenses
Certification means the FAA has determined that the Max 10's design meets safety standards, following engineering reviews and flight testing.
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design → mean → reviews
But Boeing must continue to show it can consistently build the aircraft to the approved design, and each plane must be cleared before it can fly passengers.
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it → continue → passengers
The Max 10's certification completes the lineup of four 737 Max models.
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certification → complete → models
The FAA cleared the Max 7 for airline operations in August.
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FAA → clear → August
Pope on Tuesday described the certification of both the Max 7 and Max 10 in the same year as a sign of the company's resilience.
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Pope → describe → resilience
In the wake of the fatal Max 8 crashes, the FAA overhauled how it certifies Boeing aircraft.
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it → overhaul → aircraft
But over the past 18 months, the agency has gradually eased some of its restrictions on the company, increasing the limit on how many planes Boeing can produce.
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Boeing → ease → planes
In July, the FAA also said Boeing could once again issue airworthiness certificates for its 737 Max and 787 planes at the end of production, allowing the company to take back some responsibility for determining whether finished aircraft are ready to fly.
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aircraft → say → responsibility
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