After being grounded for two years, the first Boeing 737 Max takes off from MIA
Nearly two years after the national air safety agency grounded Boeing Max planes following two Boeing Max crashes that killed 346 people, the first Boeing 737 Max departed Miami International Airport. There were 100 passengers aboard Flight 718 on Tuesday morning’s trip to New York.
Boeing Max’s first U.S. commercial flight from MIA
According to The Associated Press, Flight 718 was the aircraft’s first U.S. commercial flight since faulty sensor readings contributed to the two deadly crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia less than six months apart and led to the grounding in March 2019. The first passenger flight with a revamped Max took place earlier this month in Brazil.
The American Airlines flight was scheduled to land at New York’s LaGuardia Airport around 1:30 p.m. Eastern, an airline spokeswoman told the AP. The airline gave customers the chance to change flights if they were uncomfortable on the Max.
“Congratulations to American Airlines on becoming the first U.S. carrier to bring back the MAX today, with two daily flights between MIA and New York’s LaGuardia Airport,” said Jack Varela, a spokesman for MIA. “We welcome the 737 Max back into service and look forward towards meeting all the travel needs of our customers.”
Federal Aviation Administration chief Stephen Dickson signed an order on Nov. 18 rescinding the grounding. U.S. airlines were to be allowed to fly the Max once Boeing updated critical software and computers on each plane and pilots received training in flight simulators. Regulators in Europe and Brazil also cleared the way for the resumption after the changes were made.
In the two crashes in 2019, the Boeing Max’s systems pushed the plane’s noses down repeatedly due to faulty sensor readings and pilots could not regain control of the crafts, investigators found.
Max fleet in Miami
Before the grounding, MIA’s largest airline, American Airlines, based its Max fleet of 24 aircraft in Miami. Since the Boeing Max stoppage, the planes were stationed at the company’s technical operations center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
American plans to make one round trip a day between Miami and New York with the planes through Jan. 4 before putting the Max on more routes. United Airlines plans to resume flights with the Max in February, and Southwest Airlines plans to resume flights with the planes in March, according to the AP.
Miami Herald reporter Taylor Dolven and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story was originally published December 29, 2020 at 1:56 PM.
