It’s been almost one and a half months since the 737 MAX airplanes were banned from flying, and according to Reuters it looks like it could be at least a few more months until we could see the jet in the air again. According to the article, the 737 MAX is expected to be ungrounded around mid-July.
According to the article, Boeing is expecting the U.S. Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) to approve the software fix soon. Approval for the software fix could come as soon as the third week of May with the flights expected to resume in mid-July.
The revisioning and approval of the software fix is a high priority for the FAA. A thorough safety review will need to be completed by the FAA to approve the installation of the software on the airplanes. Sources say the revision has not been submitted by Boeing for approval by the FAA yet, and the sources also stated they don’t know how long recertification could take.
The FAA only has a say on flights in the United States airspace. Once the software fix has been approved, the FAA will need to work with the other international regulators worldwide to prove the 737 MAX is safe to operate. Some of the other major agencies include European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), Transport Canada Civil Aviation (TCCA) to name a few.
There are more than 35 airlines worldwide using the 737 MAX in their fleet.