FAA reviews Boeing MAX jet certification

Major countries, including China, represented on review panel, which is scheduled to file report in 90 days in aftermath of 2 fatal crashes

The US Federal Aviation Administration met with aviation experts from major countries in Seattle on Monday to review the original certification of Boeing's 737 MAX jetliner, grounded worldwide following two crashes that killed a total of 346 people.

The review panel, which includes representatives from China, Australia, Brazil, Canada, Japan, Indonesia, Singapore, the United Arab Emirates and the European Union, is scheduled to file a report within 90 days.

The international team of experts, officially called the Joint Authorities Technical Review panel, is headed by Chris Hart, former chairman of the US National Transportation Safety Board, the agency charged with investigating domestic plane crashes.

In Chicago, Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg told stockholders on Monday at the company's annual meeting that software updates for the MAX's automated anti-stall system will make the plane the safest in the world.

"These enduring values are at the core of everything we do," Muilenburg said in prepared remarks. "We have a responsibility to design, build and support the safest airplanes in the sky."

Muilenburg vowed to rebuild public confidence and said he will be on the first flights of the MAX 8 when it is back in service. During the meeting, shareholders voted against a proposal to strip Muilenburg of his chairman position.

Outside the meeting, a small group of protesters held photos of some of the crash victims as well as signs that read "Prosecute Boeing & execs for manslaughter" and "Boeing's arrogance kills".

Investigators are focusing on the aircraft's Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), an automated anti-stall device that may have forced the noses of the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines planes down and into a fatal plunge when it erroneously determined the aircraft were about to stall.

The Ethiopian Airlines flight crashed March 10, and the Lion Air flight crashed on Oct 29, 2018. Boeing MAX jets were grounded worldwide March 13. MAX jets entered service in 2017.

The pilot or co-pilot can turn off the automated system by pressing a button on the center console. However, pilots in the US have said they were not adequately informed about the system, and several developed an ad hoc manual explaining its use. In the US, Southwest, American and United fly MAX jets.

Airlines flying MAX jets said grounding the plane is likely to reduce worldwide combined profits by hundreds of millions of dollars.

American Airlines CEO Doug Parker told analysts in an earnings call that MAX groundings are expected to reduce pre-tax earnings by about $350 million.

Boeing said its pilots have made 120 flights totaling 203 hours to test new software developed for the anti-stall system and that the company is ready to proceed with certification.

If the FAA approves the software update, MAX jets could return to service as soon as August, following installation of the new software, pilot training and inspection of each plane.

Boeing didn't tell airlines using 737 MAX jets or the FAA that a safety feature found in earlier models designed to warn pilots about malfunctioning sensors had been deactivated, The Wall Street Journal reported, citing industry and governmental officials.

The alerts tell the flight crew if the "angle-of-attack vane" is transmitting faulty data about the angle of the plane's nose. Boeing made the alerts optional, allowing airlines to configure the planes to meet their needs.

The FAA imposed new safety checks on MAX jets effective June 3, following reports of hydraulic leakage when planes were stuck by lightning. Inspectors will focus on aileron and elevator power controls. The aileron, or flap, is a movable airfoil on the trailing edge of an airplane's wing used when making turns. Elevators are also flight control surfaces, but at the rear of the plane, and control the aircraft's pitch in flight.

In mid-April, Boeing reduced its monthly production of 737 MAX planes from 52 to 42, a cut of nearly 20 percent. Problems stemming from the worldwide grounding of the MAX jetliner drove Boeing's net earnings down 13 percent in the first quarter of 2019 compared with the first quarter of 2018, the company said in its quarterly report released earlier this month.

Boeing's stock closed on Monday on the New York Stock Exchange at $379.05 a share, down $1.74, or 0.46 percent from the Friday close. The 52-week range is $292.47 to $446.01.