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FAA planning additional simulator testing in October

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NTSB says Boeing ( BA ) should have informed United Airlines

planes

were equipped with specific components

By David Shepardson

WASHINGTON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - The U.S. National

Transportation Safety Board said on Monday more than 40 foreign

operators of Boeing 737 airplanes may be using planes

with rudder components that could pose safety risks.

The NTSB on Thursday issued urgent safety recommendations

about the potential for a jammed rudder control system on some

737 airplanes after a February incident involving a United

Airlines flight.

The NTSB also disclosed on Monday that it had learned two

foreign operators suffered similar incidents in 2019 involving

rollout guidance actuators.

"We are concerned of the possibility that other airlines are

unaware of the presence of these actuators on their 737

airplanes," NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy said in a letter to

Federal Aviation Administration Administrator Mike Whitaker.

The issue is the latest setback to Boeing ( BA ), which has faced a

series of safety questions after a mid-air emergency in January

involving a new Alaska Airlines 737 MAX 9 missing four

key bolts.

The NTSB is investigating an incident in February in which

the rudder pedals on a United 737 MAX 8 were "stuck" in the

neutral position during a landing at Newark. There were no

injuries to the 161 passengers and crew.

Boeing ( BA ) shares fell 2.7% on Monday.

The NTSB said on Thursday there were no longer any 737s

flying with U.S. airlines with the affected actuators, which

were installed in some 737 MAX and prior-generation 737 NG

planes that included an optional landing system.

The NTSB said 271 impacted parts may be installed on

aircraft in service operated by at least 40 foreign air carriers

and 16 may still be installed on U.S.-registered aircraft and up

to 75 may have been used in aftermarket installation.

The NTSB and FAA did not identify which carriers may be

using the parts.

Homendy, who spoke to Whitaker about the problem last

week, said she was concerned the FAA "did not take this issue

more seriously until we issued our urgent safety recommendation

report."

The FAA said it was taking the NTSB recommendations

seriously and it was scheduled to do additional simulator

testing in October.

An FAA corrective action review board met Friday and the

agency said it was moving quickly to convene a call with

affected civil aviation authorities to make sure they have the

information they need, including any recommended actions.

United said last week the rudder control parts at issue were

in use in only nine of its 737 aircraft originally built for

other airlines and the components were all removed earlier this

year.

The NTSB on Monday criticized Boeing ( BA ) for failing to inform

United the 737s it received were equipped with actuators

"mechanically connected to the rudder control system" and

expressed concerns other airlines were unaware of their

presence.

"Flight crews may not know what to expect if the rollout

guidance actuator fails at low altitude or during landing," the

NTSB said, calling the failure "unacceptable."

Boeing ( BA ), which declined to comment on Monday, said last week

it had informed affected 737 operators of a "potential condition

with the rudder rollout guidance actuator" in August.

A spokesperson for Japan's All Nippon Airways,

which operates 39 Boeing 737-NG planes, said on Tuesday "as a

precaution, we are in the preparatory stages of removing the

parts that the NTSB pointed out," adding it had no impact on its

operations. It is assessing how many of its planes are impacted,

the person said.

Japan Airlines ( JPNRF ), which operates 62 Boeing

737-800 planes, said none of its 737 planes use the impacted

parts, according to a spokesperson.