The Problem With Boeing 737 Max

Proclaimed as the world's 'most reliable aircraft', a ghost of problems plagues the new Boeing 737 Max. Following two catastrophic incidents with two Max 8 models, latest being the Ethiopian Airlines crash killing all 150 on board, has alarm bells ringing in the aviation industry. In October 2018, a Boeing 737 Max crashed in Indonesia, killing 189 people, after takeoff from Jakarta.

Mary Schiavo, an aviation analyst and former inspector general of the US Transportation Department, said this is highly suspicious. "Here we have a brand-new aircraft that's gone down twice in a year. That rings alarm bells in the aviation industry because that just doesn't happen. Another expert, Neil Hansford described the latest incident as 'big problem' for Boeing. Hansford said he would not fly on one of 'those'. He said both incidents, Ethiopian Airlines and the Indonesian crash, are strikingly similar. Hansford questioned the 'education and training' around Boeing's updated software that was meant to prevail a stall.

Currently, Boeing has delivered around 350 Max 8's from more than 4000 on order. The new model, 737 Max, was developed with a new fuel-efficient version of its rival, the Airbus A320. Moreover, it is designed with similar features to the usual 737 so that pilots would not have to undergo costly extra training to learn to fly it. However, aviation experts say their biggest concern with the new Boeing aircraft is the 'Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) - automated anti-stall system, which is a new characteristic on the new Max 8. Hansford said the MCAS kicks in when the plane is climbing too quickly and could stall the aircraft. "This system stops that stall but is not supposed to kick in when the aircraft is flown manually by the pilot. It only kicks in during autopilot mode," he explained.

With experts and analysts bring a lack of training to the fore, investigations are continuing to determine the cause of the crash.