The Boeing 737 MAX is the fourth generation of the Boeing 737, a narrow-body airliner manufactured by Boeing Commercial Airplanes (BCA), a division of American company Boeing. It succeeds the Boeing 737 Next Generation (NG) and competes with the Airbus A320neo family.
The new series was announced on August 30, 2011. It took its maiden flight on January 29, 2016 and was certified by the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in March 2017. The first delivery was a MAX 8 in May 2017 to Malindo Air, with which it commenced service on May 22, 2017.
The 737 MAX is based on earlier 737 designs, with more efficient CFM International LEAP-1B engines, aerodynamic changes including distinctive split-tip winglets, and airframe modifications.
The 737 MAX series has been offered in four variants, offering 138 to 204 seats in typical two-class configuration, and a range of . The 737 MAX 7, MAX 8 (including the 200–seat MAX 200), and MAX 9 are intended to replace the 737-700, -800, and -900 respectively, and a further-stretched 737 MAX 10 is available. , the 737 MAX has 4,485 unfilled orders and 1,313 deliveries.
The 737 MAX suffered a recurring failure in the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), causing two fatal crashes, Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, in which 346 people died. It was subsequently grounded worldwide from March 2019 to November 2020. The FAA garnered criticism for defending the aircraft and was the last major authority to ground it. Investigations faulted a Boeing cover-up of a defect and lapses in the FAA's certification of the aircraft for flight. The accidents and grounding cost Boeing an estimated $20billion in fines, compensation and legal fees , with indirect losses of more than $60 billion from 1,200 cancelled orders. In 2021, Boeing also paid in penalties and compensation to settle the DOJ's fraud conspiracy case against the company. Further investigations also revealed that the FAA and Boeing had colluded on recertification test flights, attempted to cover up important information and that the FAA had retaliated against whistleblowers.
The FAA cleared the return to service on November 18, 2020, subject to mandated design and training changes. Canadian and European authorities only followed in late January 2021, and Chinese authorities in December 2021, as over 180 countries out of 195 had lifted the grounding. Over 450 MAX aircraft were awaiting delivery in November 2020; 335 remained by January 2022. Boeing estimated that the backlog would be largely cleared by the end of 2023, after its order book was reduced by almost 1,000 aircraft due to cancellations from loss of trust in the aircraft.
Development
Background
In 2006, Boeing started considering the replacement of the 737 with a "clean-sheet" design that could follow the Boeing 787 Dreamliner. In June 2010, a decision on this replacement was postponed until 2011.
On December 1, 2010, Boeing's competitor, Airbus, launched the Airbus A320neo family to improve fuel economy and operating efficiency with new engines: CFM International LEAP and the Pratt & Whitney PW1000G. In February 2011, Boeing CEO Jim McNerney said, "We're going to do a new airplane." In March 2011, BCA President James Albaugh told participants of a trade meeting that the company was not sure about a 737 re-engine, as Boeing CFO James A. Bell had said at an investor conference the same month. The Airbus A320neo gathered 667 commitments at the June 2011 Paris Air Show for a backlog of 1,029 units since its launch, setting an order record for a new commercial airliner.
On July 20, 2011, American Airlines announced an order for 460 narrowbody jets including 130 A320ceos (Current Engine Option), 130 A320neos, 100 737NG and intended to order 100 re-engined 737s with CFM LEAPs, pending Boeing confirmation. The order broke Boeing's monopoly with the airline and forced Boeing into a re-engined 737. As this sale included a Most-Favoured-Customer Clause, Airbus has to refund any difference to American Airlines if it sells to another airline at a lower price, so the European manufacturer was unable to offer it at a price which United Airlines deemed to be "competitive" leaving the airline with a Boeing-skewed fleet.