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FAA ruling on a 737 Max software bug puts the Max 10 back in line for certification

FAA safety experts ruled a 737 Max software glitch poses no safety concern, clearing a late obstacle to Boeing's Max 10 and its nearly 1,500 orders. Officials told Reuters approval could come as soon as later this month, with crews following an interim procedure until Boeing finishes a software fix.

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What happened

  • The FAA's Corrective Action Review Board based its ruling on pilots keeping full control of the aircraft and on cockpit indications it called clear and unambiguous.
  • According to Boeing, the fault appears when crews modify a preprogrammed route after a missed approach, requiring extra cockpit steps before automated guidance returns for the next attempt.
  • FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said Boeing had corrected an earlier bug, but that the correction introduced this new one.
  • Boeing will tell airlines how to recognize and respond to the fault, and the FAA will flag that guidance to US carriers and foreign regulators in a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin.

Why it matters

  • Who's exposed exposure The remaining certification risk sits in Boeing's unfinished software fix, because the last correction to this code is the one that created the go-around fault.
  • Who's exposed exposure The ruling also covers the Max 7, which runs the same software, so Southwest no longer has an open review over the newly certified jet.
  • Who has to decide decision Max 10 customers including Alaska and United had faced a possible lengthy delay. They can now plan around a certification date between later this month and year-end.

"The pilots remain in control of the airliner, train for these scenarios," Bedford said. "The issue that we're looking at right now is the workload component." [19] Because control was not in question, the agency handled the fault with a crew procedure and let certification work go ahead [1][14].

The hold was brief. The FAA said earlier in the week that it would delay Max 10 certification until it had finished its analysis [15]. The review board that met in Seattle cleared the issue on Friday, October 2 [3][1]. The jet's approval has been delayed for years [11], and this obstacle lasted less than a week [16].

The order estimate comes from a Jefferies research note [7], and Jefferies said the ruling allows certification before the end of the year [8]. Officials have pointed to later this month, which leaves the analyst's outer bound about two months past theirs, running through November and December [17]. The reports do not include a delivery schedule or a value for those orders.

The FAA is moving before the software is fixed. Boeing said it "will continue to follow the lead of the FAA" while it develops a fix and works with airlines on an interim procedure that lets crews restore automated vertical navigation [5]. On the officials' timeline, the Max 10 could be certified with that procedure in place and the fix still unfinished [20]. Major US airlines had already chosen not to use the affected software version while the review ran [9].

There are three ways this can go. Approval comes later this month. It slips toward Jefferies' year-end bound. Or it stalls because the permanent fix brings a defect of its own, the way Bedford said the last correction did [18]. I'd expect certification inside the Jefferies window, because the board's finding settles the one question the FAA said it was holding certification for [15][2]. If the Max 10 is still uncertified at year-end, or the FAA puts on a new hold over the replacement software, I'm wrong. The case against my view is the program's record. The FAA certified the Max 7 in August only after requiring several design changes, including updates to flight-control software and the engine anti-ice system [10].

What to watch

  • Whether the FAA certifies the Max 10 by the end of October, as officials told Reuters, or uses the room Jefferies left through December 31.
  • Boeing's permanent software fix, and whether the FAA sends that release back to a review board after the last correction produced this fault.
  • Whether foreign regulators that receive the FAA's Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin accept the interim procedure or set conditions of their own.

Information, not investment advice. This story is general information about companies and markets, drawn from cited reporting. It is not a recommendation to buy, sell or hold any security; check the cited sources before acting.

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Reality

Evidence66
Adoption58
Hype gap+15
Incentives60
Confidence64

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  1. [1]

    On Friday, Oct 2, the FAA said a panel of experts had determined a software glitch in some Boeing 737 MAX flight computers poses no safety concern, clearing the way for approval of the MAX 10, the largest variant.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  2. [2]

    "The FAA's Corrective Action Review Board made that determination because pilots retain full control of the aircraft and the indications to the flight crew are clear and unambiguous," the FAA said.

    Reported Supported Source: FAA statementView cited source
  3. [3]

    The review board met in Seattle and drew on FAA specialists in airframes, flight controls, propulsion and flight testing.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  4. [4]

    According to Boeing, the problem surfaces during a go-around when crews modify a preprogrammed route after a missed approach, after which extra cockpit actions are needed before automated guidance is available again on the next attempt.

    Reported Supported Source: BoeingView cited source
  5. [5]

    Boeing said it "will continue to follow the lead of the FAA" while a software fix is developed, and is coordinating with airlines on an interim procedure so crews can restore automated vertical navigation if they encounter the problem.

    Reported Supported Source: BoeingView cited source
  6. [6]

    Aviation officials believe the Max 10 could receive certification as soon as later this month, according to Reuters.

    Reported Supported Source: Reuters, citing aviation officialsView cited source
  7. [7]

    Boeing has nearly 1,500 Max 10s on order from airlines, according to Reuters citing a Jefferies research note.

    Reported Supported Source: Jefferies via ReutersView cited source
  8. [8]

    Jefferies said in a research note that the decision allows the MAX 10 to be certified before the end of the year.

    Reported Supported Source: JefferiesView cited source
  9. [9]

    Major US airlines had opted not to use the affected software version while the analysis was underway.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  10. [10]

    The Max 10 is the last Max variant awaiting FAA certification; the FAA certified the Max 7 in August after requiring Boeing to make several design changes, including updates to flight-control software and the engine anti-ice system.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  11. [11]

    The decision removes a late obstacle to certification of the MAX 10, which has been delayed for years.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  12. [12]

    The MAX 7, certified in August, uses the same software; the decision should ease concerns at airlines flying it, and the issue could also have affected Southwest Airlines.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  13. [13]

    Alaska Airlines and United Airlines, which have ordered the MAX 10, could have been affected by a lengthy delay.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  14. [14]

    Boeing will issue a bulletin to airlines on how to recognize and respond to the situation, and the FAA will issue a Special Airworthiness Information Bulletin to US airlines and foreign regulators to ensure they are aware of Boeing's bulletin.

    Reported Supported Source: FAA officialView cited source
  15. [15]

    The FAA said earlier in the week of Oct 2 that it was delaying certification of the MAX 10 until it completed an analysis of the software issue.

    Reported SupportedView cited source
  16. [16]

    The FAA's hold on Max 10 certification over the glitch lasted less than a week.

    Derived Supported
  17. [17]

    Jefferies' year-end bound runs about two months, November and December, past the officials' expected date of later in October.

    Derived Supported
  18. [18]

    FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford said a prior bug had been corrected by Boeing but the fix introduced a new one, and that the issue centered on pilot workload.

    Reported Supported Source: Bryan Bedford, FAA AdministratorView cited source
  19. [19]

    "The pilots remain in control of the airliner, train for these scenarios," Bedford said. "The issue that we're looking at right now is the workload component."

    Reported Supported Source: Bryan Bedford, FAA AdministratorView cited source
  20. [20]

    On the officials' timeline, the Max 10 could be certified while Boeing's software fix is still in development and crews rely on the interim procedure.

    Derived Supported

Sources

2 independent publishers whose own reporting we read for this story.

  1. channelnewsasia.com

    2 articles · October 2, 2026

    US FAA says Boeing 737 MAX software glitch poses no safety issue
  2. mezha.net

    1 article · October 2, 2026

    FAA не вбачає загрози у збої Boeing 737 MAX і наблизило сертифікацію MAX 10
  3. qz.com

    1 article · October 5, 2026

    FAA cleared Boeing's 737 Max software glitch as not a safety issue

Topics and entities

Topics

  • Avionics software safety
  • Commercial aviation
  • Aircraft Certification

Entities