According to reports, the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued an Airworthiness Directive on the probable reduced fire suppression problem on Boeing 737 MAX and 737 new generation (NG) aircraft.
The AD restricts transporting freight in the holds “unless they can certify objects are nonflammable and noncombustible” due to “failed electronic flow management of the air conditioning packs” that blow air into the cargo hold from various areas in the aircraft, according to Reuters on August 6, 2021.
This airworthiness regulation affects 663 aircraft in the United States and approximately 2,204 aircraft worldwide.
The Boeing 737 MAX aircraft has been affected by the Airworthiness Directive for the second time in five months. The FAA issued an AD in April 2021 demanding Boeing to address the “unsafe condition” of some Boeing 737 MAX airplanes. The decision came after Boeing requested that 16 737 MAX operators resolve an electrical issue.
Insufficient bonding of certain “metallic support panel assemblies installed in two locations of the flight deck, which impacts the electrical grounding of installed equipment” was discovered during a study of certain Boeing 737 MAX aircraft.
According to FAA estimates, the Airworthiness Directive impacted 71 Boeing 737 MAX airplanes flying in the United States.
