Boeing 737 Max Faces New Safety Concerns: Bird Strikes Could Lead to Smoke in Cabin

Pilots flying Boeing 737 Max planes have been warned of a new potential safety issue: bird strikes on engines might lead to smoke infiltrating the passenger cabin. This concern came to light after Boeing alerted major carriers, including Southwest Airlines and American Airlines, about the risk in February, prompting these airlines to notify their pilots accordingly.

The warning follows reports of two incidents where CFM LEAP-1B engines, used on Boeing 737 Max aircraft, failed after being struck by large birds during takeoff and initial climb. According to the notifications sent to American Airlines pilots, these strikes could cause oil to burn, leading to smoke and fumes entering the cabin through the air conditioning system.

This issue adds to the ongoing scrutiny of the 737 Max series, which has faced multiple challenges related to manufacturing and design. Although CFM International, the engine manufacturer, has stated that the engines met all bird ingestion certification requirements and performed as expected during these incidents, the birds involved were reportedly larger than those typically used in certification tests.

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has indicated that it is continuing to work with Boeing to investigate these incidents and will decide if further measures are necessary based on their findings. Meanwhile, Boeing confirmed it issued a service bulletin regarding the bird strike incidents and is collaborating closely with CFM and the FAA to address and learn from these occurrences.

These developments were disclosed as Boeing’s outgoing CEO, Dave Calhoun, addressed recent failures of the company, including the fatal crashes involving the 737 Max 8 model, before Congress, taking responsibility for the company’s past mistakes. This ongoing saga highlights the complex challenges Boeing faces as it seeks to ensure the safety and reliability of its aircraft.