Europe Clears Boeing 737 MAX for Return to Service

Aviation officials in Europe have cleared the Boeing 737 MAX plane to return to service after being grounded for nearly two years.

According to NPR.org, the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) said a modified version of the MAX is now allowed to fly after several upgrades to “software, electrical system, operational manuals and training of flight crews” were completed.

“Following extensive analysis by EASA, we have determined that the 737 MAX can safely return to service,” EASA Executive Director Patrick Ky said.

“Let me be quite clear that this journey does not end here,” Ky continued. “We have every confidence that the aircraft is safe, which is the precondition for giving our approval, but we will continue to monitor 737 MAX operations closely as the aircraft resumes service.”

In November, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) officially cleared the way for the 737 MAX to return to service. At the time, Boeing CEO David Calhoun said it was less a day for celebration as it was for remembrance.

While the re-entry into service in Europe was great news for Boeing, the aviation company announced it lost $8.4 billion in the fourth quarter of 2020 and a record full-year loss of $11.94 billion.

The Associated Press is reporting that much of the company’s losses in 2020 were associated with the coronavirus pandemic, the grounding of the 737 MAX and a pretax charge of $6.5 billion tied to a different plane, the bigger 777X.