The FAA blames « unacceptable » quality issues for its decision to bar Boeing from raising production across its 737 MAX range of aircraft.
US aviation regulators have overturned their grounding of Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes following a mid-air panel blowout aboard an aircraft earlier this month but imposed an unprecedented restriction on the company.
In an update on its work following the incident on an Alaska Airlines MAX 9 on 5 January, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it had banned Boeing from expanding production of all its best-selling 737 MAX model variants.
It blamed « unacceptable » quality issues for the decision, which aviation experts said was a first for the industry.
The penalty threatens to further deepen delays in airlines, such as major customer Ryanair, receiving already delayed orders for MAX planes.
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Europe’s largest airline by passenger numbers does not utilise the MAX 9 but is already being hampered by Boeing not meeting delivery deadlines for MAX 8 and MAX 10 models.
