Was the MCAS malfunction alert an optional feature for airlines?

Question

Accepted Answer

The MCAS Malfunction Alert Was Initially an Optional Feature for Airlines

US regulators considered grounding some Boeing 737 MAX aircraft last year after discovering that a critical alert for the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) had been deactivated by the manufacturer. This discovery occurred before the fatal Lion Air crash and involved inspectors monitoring Southwest Airlines, a major operator of the 737 MAX fleet.
Discovery of Deactivated MCAS Alert

Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspectors identified that Boeing had deactivated a signal intended to alert cockpit crews to a malfunctioning MCAS system. This finding was made prior to the Lion Air crash in October, which, along with the Ethiopia Airlines disaster in March, has since focused investigative attention on the MCAS. The inspectors were overseeing Southwest Airlines, which operated 34 of the 737 MAX aircraft at the time of this discovery.
Hypothesis on Pilot Training

The deactivated signal hypothesis emerged as inspectors sought to ascertain whether pilots flying the 737 MAX required additional training. While this hypothesis was debated among the inspectors, it was ultimately abandoned and not escalated to higher-ranking officials within the FAA. The inspectors learned that Boeing had made the malfunction alert signal an optional feature, available at an additional cost, rather than a standard operational component.
Southwest Airlines' Lack of Awareness

Following the Lion Air crash, Southwest Airlines requested that Boeing reactivate the MCAS malfunction signal. It was revealed that Boeing had deactivated this signal on all 737 MAX planes delivered to Southwest without informing the airline. Consequently, neither Southwest Airlines nor its pilots were aware of these changes until after the Lion Air incident, despite having begun flying the aircraft in 2017.
Boeing's Notification and FAA Stance

A Southwest Airlines spokeswoman confirmed that prior to the Lion Air event, the signals were presented by Boeing as operational on all MAX aircraft. However, after the Lion Air crash, Boeing notified Southwest that the signals had been turned off unless specifically designated as active. An FAA spokesman stated that the malfunction alert signal is indeed an option that carriers can choose to implement.

Reading history

Hide →

This history is cleared when the page is closed.

Was the MCAS malfunction alert an optional feature for airlines?

Loading

Was this article helpful?

Helpful

Not helpful

Report an issue

1

0

0

Share with friends