Tensions between international aviation authorities over Boeing

The grounding of Boeing 737 MAX 8s caused tension between international aviation authorities, according to the Financial Times.

While international aviation bodies would usually follow the lead of the US’ Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) and the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) both took the step to ground MAX 8s even as the FAA continued to insist on their safety.

The FAA eventually grounded the MAX 8s three days after the Ethiopian Airlines incident, citing new data on both crashes in which the MAX 8 had been involved, but its response was seen by some as too slow.

The FAA has also come under fire for having certified the MAX 8s in the first place. Canada’s minister of transport, Marc Garneau, indicated that the country would be re-examining its original independent validation of the plane, and will be doing the same for the upcoming software fix by Boeing that has been mandated by the FAA.

While US agencies are officially supporting the FAA, former industry figures have expressed alarm, including the former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, Jim Hall, who said that “the actions of the FAA have essentially called into question the confidence other nations have had in our aviation authorities for decades.”

Source: Financial Times

Header image: Samuel Tan