U.S.-Canada Rift Widens Over Training for Boeing 737 MAX Pilots
18 April 2019 - 7:59PM
Dow Jones News
By Kim Mackrael and Andy Pasztor
A rift between the U.S. and Canada is growing over how to ensure
the safety of Boeing Co.'s grounded 737 MAX planes, as Ottawa's
focus on additional pilot training could lead to a delay in getting
the jet back in the air.
Canada's transport minister has signaled that his government
could require additional simulator training for pilots of the 737
MAX. That threatens to widen the gap between plans being developed
by U.S. authorities to put the planes into service and those of
other countries, according to industry officials and others
participating in or tracking the process.
"Simulators are the very best way from a training point of view
to go over exactly what could happen in a real way and to react
properly to it, " Canadian Transport Minister Marc Garneau said
Wednesday. "It's not going to be a question of pulling out an iPad
and spending an hour on it."
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration has tentatively decided
against mandating additional simulator instruction as part of a
package that is anticipated within weeks and includes a software
fix for a flight-control system implicated in two fatal 737 MAX
crashes in less than five months. Industry officials said that
could change based on input from foreign regulators, as well as
responses from domestic pilot unions and other groups during a
public comment period ending April 30.
Aviation regulators in Canada, Europe, China and Brazil
previously indicated they would conduct their own safety reviews of
the software fix to the automated flight-control system--known as
MCAS--instead of accepting the FAA's analysis and decision to
require only interactive and self-instructional training on laptops
or other electronic devices.
However, Mr. Garneau's remarks are the first explicit break with
the U.S. by a foreign regulator and could mean months of additional
delays in other countries while extra simulator time is reserved
and new training scenarios are developed.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Garneau said no formal decision has been
made about requiring simulator training. She said Mr. Garneau would
wait to see what Boeing says and speak with experts before making a
final decision.
An FAA spokesman didn't have any comment. Previously, agency
officials have said they welcome recommendations from foreign
regulators but stressed that the U.S. will act independently based
on its review of data and safety considerations.
A Boeing spokesman said the plane maker is working with global
regulators and airlines "as they determine training requirements in
their home markets."
European regulators previously signaled it could take months for
them to assess the FAA's software fix and training requirements,
according to industry and government officials on both sides of the
Atlantic Ocean.
The situation marks a sharp departure from tradition--stretching
back many decades--when major safety decisions from the FAA
affecting American-built aircraft tended to be routinely embraced
by foreign counterparts. Trust and cooperation have frayed
following the 737 MAX groundings, which have roiled the global
aerospace industry.
The FAA has set up a high-level international advisory panel,
which includes Canadian representatives, to analyze the software
fix and related training issues. FAA officials hope such strategies
will help shore up international support among regulators and
passengers. Brazilian and European regulators previously raised
questions about certain MAX flight-control features during the
initial FAA certification of the plane.
Canada has required additional training for domestic airlines in
the past. After a Lion Air jet crashed off the coast of Indonesia
last year, pilots with Canadian airlines that operate the Boeing
737 MAX 8 and 9 aircraft received training that Mr. Garneau has
said went beyond what was mandated in the U.S.
The FAA's preliminary training decision also has been shelved by
one large U.S. carrier, American Airlines Group Inc. which is
devising its own additional simulator sessions focusing on
maneuvers similar to those that resulted from the misfiring of the
suspect flight-control feature. Ground simulators specifically
designed to mimic the 737 MAX won't become widely available until
autumn or later.
Chicago-based Boeing has been devising a software fix for the
jet's flight-control system that is expected to rely on two sensors
that measure the angle of the plane's nose--instead of one
currently--and be less aggressive and more easily controllable by
pilots.
The FAA originally approved the MAX by requiring minimal
additional training for pilots who were transitioning from flying
earlier 737 models. In developing the new model, Boeing aimed to
keep additional training requirements at a minimum so pilots and
airlines could avoid expensive simulator time.
United Continental Holdings Inc., one of three MAX operators in
the U.S., said it had no plans to add simulator training unless
federal authorities required it. Chief Operating Officer Greg Hart
said Wednesday during an earnings conference call that even without
specific training on the MAX's stall-prevention system, United
pilots already receive training on the type of situation pilots
faced on both the Lion Air flight and the Ethiopian Airlines flight
which crashed last month.
Alison Sider and Andrew Tangel contributed to this article.
Write to Kim Mackrael at kim.mackrael@wsj.com and Andy Pasztor
at andy.pasztor@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
April 18, 2019 05:44 ET (09:44 GMT)
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