Pilots had major safety concerns with Boeing 737 Max planes that went unanswered, report shows

Max 737 jet.
(Image credit: MICHAEL TEWELDE / Getty Images)

Deadly crashes were far from the first time federal aviation officials heard concerns with Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes.

The airplane model has been the subject of investigations and country-wide bans after a second plane crashed Sunday, killing everyone onboard. But in the months prior, at least five pilots reported serious safety issues with the MAX 8 to a federal database, The Dallas Morning News first reported.

A new Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashed in October shortly after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia, killing all 189 people onboard, and a preliminary probe suggested the plane's anti-stall technology may had led to the crash. The Federal Aviation Administration issued a warning about the system, but one scathing report from a pilot said that wasn't enough.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

In the report submitted to the federal database, the pilot characterized the 737 MAX 8's flight mechanisms as "jury rigging," and said it was "unconscionable that a manufacturer, the FAA, and the airlines" would let pilots fly such a "highly complex" plane without extensive training, Politico details. The flight manual provided "criminally insufficient" information, the anonymous pilot also said. Other pilots detailed issues with the plane's autopilot system, all occurring right as the plane climbed after takeoff.

The second Ethiopian Airlines crash on Sunday involved a brand new plane and a pilot with an "excellent flying record." It also crashed right after takeoff, killing all 157 passengers and crew members. An FAA spokesperson told The Dallas Morning News that "thus far, our review shows no systemic performance issues and provides no basis to order grounding the aircraft." Boeing has similarly defended the model's safety. Read more about what was in the complaints at The Dallas Morning News.

To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us
Kathryn Krawczyk

Kathryn is a graduate of Syracuse University, with degrees in magazine journalism and information technology, along with hours to earn another degree after working at SU's independent paper The Daily Orange. She's currently recovering from a horse addiction while living in New York City, and likes to share her extremely dry sense of humor on Twitter.