FAA Clears Boeing Max 10 After Safety Scrutiny

The Federal Aviation Administration approved Boeing’s 737 Max 10 for passenger service Tuesday, clearing the way for the company to sell the aircraft to domestic and foreign carriers after years of delays. Boeing expects deliveries to begin in 2027. The approval gives the plane a powerful regulator’s stamp, as Boeing needs it to improve its financial footing and restore its reputation.

The cost behind the certification

The approval follows two deadly crashes involving the smaller Max 8. The crashes, off Indonesia and in Ethiopia in 2018 and 2019, killed 346 people. In 2024, a panel flew off an Alaska Airlines Max 9 in midair, renewing scrutiny of Boeing’s manufacturing and safety practices.

Certification means the FAA determined the Max 10’s design meets safety standards after engineering reviews and flight testing. But that approval doesn’t mean every aircraft can carry passengers: Boeing still must show it can consistently build the plane to the approved design, and the FAA must clear each aircraft before it carries passengers.

After the fatal Max 8 crashes, the FAA overhauled its approach to certifying Boeing aircraft. In the 18 months before the report, the agency gradually eased some restrictions on Boeing, raising the limit on how many planes it could produce. In July, the FAA said Boeing could once again issue airworthiness certificates for its 737 Max and 787 planes at the end of production, returning some responsibility to the company for deciding whether finished aircraft were ready to fly.

The regulator approved a design; Boeing still has to demonstrate consistent production. That division of responsibility gives the company room to rebuild its business, while the FAA retains the power to clear each plane for passenger service.

More seats, more orders

Boeing says the Max 10 will typically seat 185 to 210 passengers, compared with 175 to 195 on the Max 9 and 160 to 180 on the Max 8. Airlines could carry more passengers per flight and potentially lower costs per seat. More seats could eventually appear on popular routes, but the effect on fares will depend on how airlines deploy the planes and how much competition they face.

More than 30 customers worldwide have ordered 1,555 Max 10s that Boeing has yet to deliver. Those orders account for more than 30% of the company’s total 737 Max backlog. Major customers include United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, American Airlines and Ryanair. Alaska Airlines joined the list in January, ordering 105 Max 10s, with options for 35 more.

Boeing unveiled the single-aisle jet at the Paris Air Show in 2017 to compete with Airbus, but technical and regulatory hurdles repeatedly delayed certification. The Max 10 is intended to compete with Airbus’ A321neo family, which entered service in 2017. The largest A321neo can carry more passengers and fly farther without refueling than Boeing’s aircraft.

Boeing designed the Max 10 to carry more passengers while burning less fuel than older aircraft. The company says that combination may appeal to airlines facing soaring jet fuel costs amid the U.S. war with Iran, which have added pressure to control expenses.

The company’s recovery, in its own words

Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the approval followed “extensive safety reviews,” including thousands of hours of test flights, and called it a major win for American manufacturing. During a Tuesday visit to Boeing’s manufacturing plant in Everett, Washington, he said: “To think that it took us almost 10 years to get here. We all probably had a little less gray hair 10 years ago.”

Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said the certification “clears the path to deliver an airplane that will set a new standard in commercial aviation.” She called it “another major milestone in our recovery” and said it “unlocks a key to our future growth.” The FAA also cleared the Max 7 for airline operations in August; Pope described certification of both the Max 7 and Max 10 in the same year as a sign of Boeing’s resilience.

Boeing expects Max 10 deliveries to begin in 2027.