By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Sept 30 (Reuters) – US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Wednesday he does not currently see any safety concern stemming from a software issue involving the Boeing 737 MAX fleet.
“If there was like, ‘Hey we’ve got a safety issue,’ we have a different response,” Duffy told reporters after an event in Washington. “We’ve learned when you don’t respond quickly to things, bad things can happen.” He added the agency saw no need to ground the 737 MAX fleet over the issue.
On Saturday, Boeing said a software issue affecting certain 737 MAX aircraft could prevent pilots from accessing automated flight guidance during a specific landing scenario. The company said it had informed operators and was developing a software update to permanently address the problem.
On Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration said it will hold off certifying Boeing’s long-delayed 737 MAX 10 until the software issue is resolved.
On Wednesday, Duffy compared the issue to an update on a smartphone, adding that the software update “hasn’t been flagged for us as a safety issue.”
Earlier, the FAA said the software version can increase pilot workload when doing a go-around, where a pilot aborts a landing attempt, applies power, and climbs back into the sky to try to land again.
The FAA said it planned to convene a Corrective Action Review Board to investigate the issue. Officials said this may not take place until next week at the earliest.
(Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by David Gregorio)
