Aviation

Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg to Testify Before U.S. Congress

Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg to Testify Before U.S. Congress

Boeing President and CEO Dennis Muilenburg and Boeing Commercial Airplanes Vice President and Chief Engineer John Hamilton to address the Boeing 737 MAX and aviation safety

CHICAGO, Oct. 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — Boeing [NYSE: BA] President and Chief Executive Officer Dennis Muilenburg will testify tomorrow, October 29, before the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation regarding aviation safety and the 737 MAX airplane. He will be joined by Boeing Commercial Airplanes Vice President and Chief Engineer John Hamilton. Muilenburg and Hamilton will also appear Wednesday, October 30, before the U.S. House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure to discuss the design and development of the 737 MAX.

In prepared remarks released today, Muilenburg first and foremost expressed his deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of those who were lost in the Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 accidents.

“As we observe today the solemn anniversary of the loss of Lion Air Flight 610, we carry the memory of these accidents, and the lives lost, with us every day. They will never be forgotten, and those memories drive us every day to make our airplanes and our industry safer,” Muilenburg said.

Boeing has made robust improvements to the 737 MAX flight control software. “We have brought the very best of Boeing to this effort,” said Muilenburg. “We’ve dedicated all resources necessary to ensure that the improvements to the 737 MAX are comprehensive and thoroughly tested. When the 737 MAX returns to service, it will be one of the safest airplanes ever to fly.”

The Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS) flight control software function has been updated to provide additional layers of protection, including:

MCAS now compares information from both angle of attack sensors before activating and will only respond if data from both sensors agree;
MCAS will only activate a single time; and
MCAS will never provide more input than the pilot can counteract using the control column alone.

These changes will prevent the flight control conditions that occurred on the Lion Air 610 and Ethiopian Airlines 302 flights from ever happening again. Boeing has dedicated more than 100,000 engineering and test hours on the development of these improvements, flown more than 814 test flights with the updated software and conducted numerous simulator sessions with 545 participants from 99 customers and 41 global regulators.

“We have learned and are still learning from these accidents. We know we made mistakes and got some things wrong,” continued Muilenburg.

In his testimony, Muilenburg outlined key actions Boeing is taking to improve as a company, including:

Establishing a permanent Aerospace Safety Committee of the company’s Board of Directors;
Creating a new Product and Services Safety organization that will review all aspects of product safety and provide streamlined reporting and elevation of safety concerns;
Strengthening the company’s Engineering organization, with all engineers reporting up through Boeing’s chief engineer;
Investing in advanced research and development in new safety technologies; and
Exploring ways to strengthen safety not just for Boeing products and services, but the aviation industry as a whole.

Muilenburg’s written testimony is available here.

Aviation

COMAC Unveils Plans for the C929 to Rival Airbus and Boeing

After the success of China’s first C919 aircraft, the country is setting its sights on developing a larger plane. COMAC (Commercial Aircraft Corporation of China) has officially confirmed plans to build a widebody aircraft, marking a significant step in its aircraft lineup.

Traditionally, Airbus and Boeing dominate the widebody aircraft market, with decades of expertise in developing planes and engines capable of carrying heavy payloads. China, which currently relies on imported engines, is now aiming to challenge these giants with its own widebody jet, the C929, designed to compete with the Airbus A350 and Boeing 777.

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The C929 will be China’s first independently developed long-range widebody aircraft. It adheres to international airworthiness standards and boasts independent intellectual property rights. The baseline version is designed to seat 280 passengers and offers a range of 12,000 kilometers, catering to global demand for both regional and international air travel.

Russia, which also needs reliable narrowbody and widebody aircraft, could become a key customer for the C929. Additionally, China plans to target the broader Asian market as it continues to expand its aviation capabilities.

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China’s aviation progress includes the ARJ21 (now called C909), a regional jet with 100 seats for shorter routes, and the C919, a narrowbody jet with 180 seats designed to rival the Boeing 737 MAX and Airbus A320. Both models have found increasing demand in the domestic market.

At China’s largest air show in Zhuhai, COMAC announced that Air China will be the launch customer for the C929 widebody jet, though details about order size and delivery timelines were not disclosed.

Other major deals announced by COMAC include:

Hainan Airlines: Firm orders for 60 C919 and 40 C909 regional jets.
Colorful Guizhou Airlines: 30 C909 jets, with 20 firm orders and 10 provisional agreements.

The C929, renamed from the CR929 after Russia withdrew from the joint development project in 2023, is expected to carry 280–400 passengers with a range of 12,000 kilometers, competing directly with Boeing’s 787 Dreamliner.

According to COMAC’s deputy general manager, Tong Yu, the first fuselage section of the C929 is expected by September 2027, with prototype test flights anticipated soon after.