Boeing announces modifications to its 737 Max 8 aircraft involved in accidents in Ethiopia and Indonesia

The US aircraft manufacturer is modifying the badpit of the model aircraft that has suffered two incidents in the last five months.

The aeronautical society

Boeing

announced that it would make changes to its controversial control systems related to the
two fatal accidents from their 737 Max 8 aircraft over the last five months.

Early March,
An Ethiopian Airlines 737 Max crashed shortly after taking off from Addis Ababa, killing 157 people on board. Last October, 189 people died in the crash of a plane of the same type, Lion Air, leaving Jakarta, Indonesia.

The flights of these models of aircraft are suspended worldwide and there is no certainty as to their authorization to take back the plane. The announced provisions concern the sensor system designed to alert the pilots if there is a risk of stopping the aircraft engine.

The flights of these models of aircraft are suspended worldwide and there is no certainty as to their authorization to take back the plane.

Researchers have not yet determined the cause of these accidents, but the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) said that "the condition of the sensor, if it is not set, could make the 'flight crew hard to control.' aircraft and cause an excessive attitude of downward tilt, significant altitude loss and possible impact on the ground. "

The Boeing 737 Max 8 has not yet been put into service. As part of the modifications, Boeing will install a standard alarm system, which was previously an optional security feature.

None of the aircraft operated by Lion Air or Ethiopian Airlines that crashed had the alarm system, designed to alert pilots when sensors produce conflicting recordings.

The company has also ordered an update of the software involved in the accidents.

Boeing said it would not charge airlines extra costs to install the security system.

Software redesign

The company has also ordered an update of the software involved in the accidents.

The flight control software is a system called MCAS (Maneuvering Increasing System). It is designed to prevent the aircraft from losing strength through sensors that detect if the jet is rising very slightly.

However, a survey of the Lion Air flight last year revealed that the system had malfunctioned and had forced the plane to nose down more than 20 times before crashing, thus 189 victims on board.

The FFA claims that there are similarities between this accident and that of Ethiopian Airlines on March 10th. Boeing has redesigned the software to make it inactive if it receives conflicting data from its sensors.

In a scrum, Boeing said the updates did not constitute an admission that the system had been the cause of the accidents. In announcing the changes to the booths, Boeing said the final version of the software would be subject to FAA approval later in the week.

But he added that airlines should install the new software, offer an badessment of their performance and train pilots before they can receive certification and that planes are allowed to fly again.

Preliminary results of a joint investigation of the US National Transportation Safety Board, the French BEA Investigation Authority and the Ethiopian Ministry of Transportation on the Ethiopian accident Arilines are expected this week. .