Check B737 MAX for loose rudder nuts| Boeing advises airlines

NEW DELHI: After discovering a loose bolt in one of the aircraft, US aerospace company Boeing has requested that operators of Boeing 737 MAX worldwide, including Air India Express, SpiceJet, and Akasa, do safety checks on this aircraft. Operators are asked by Boeing to check particular tie rods that regulate rudder movement for potential loose hardware.
Boeing has requested that all worldwide operators of the Boeing 737 MAX, such as Air India Express, SpiceJet, and Akasa, check the tie rods that regulate the rudder movement for any loose hardware. The Directorate General of India (DGCA) attests that the required inspections are being conducted in accordance with Boeing's directives. With a combined fleet of 32 B737 MAX aircraft, SpiceJet and Akasa are unaffected by the problem. Following safety upgrades, the B737 MAX, which had previously been grounded internationally, was permitted to resume flight.
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Together, the three Indian airlines fly more than 40 B737 MAX aircraft. Rudder, among other things, essentially facilitates left or right airplane turns.
"The original equipment manufacturer (OEM) has already issued instructions to all operators for the necessary checks as is the standard protocol," a senior Directorate General of India (DGCA) official stated.
20 B737 MAX aircraft are owned by Akasa. A spokesman for the company stated: "Boeing has informed us of this problem. Akasa will adhere to the same inspections and protocols that are advised by the manufacturer or authorities, just like any other operator globally. Deliveries and our operational fleet are unaffected thus far." SpiceJet, which has 12 MAX aircraft, stated, "This (issue) will have no impact on our operation." AI Express, which possesses nine MAX, is also reported to be following all necessary procedures.
"The rudder is connected to the empennage (tail of the aircraft) through hinges by multiple nuts," senior pilots flying this sort of aircraft said. While doing standard maintenance on a device in the rudder-control linkage, an international operator found a bolt with a missing nut. This led Boeing to propose checks. Our engineers are performing the necessary inspections."

Between March 2019 and December 2020, the B737 MAX was grounded worldwide because to two consecutive crashes, one involving Ethiopian Airlines and the other involving Tiger Air, in which 346 people were killed. After a number of hardware and software modifications, the aircraft was deemed safe and was subsequently permitted to take off again. Hundreds of MAX are on order with Indian carriers.
The most recent concern arises at a moment when a new problem with the popular Airbus A320neo's (PW) snag-prone engines poses a threat to ground more of these aircraft throughout the world. About fifty IndiGo aircraft have been sidelined for several months as a result of PW's unable to provide replacement engines. IndiGo may see this number increase to 80 by the beginning of this year (2024) as roughly 35 planes(on top of the 50 already grounded) will have to be grounded in order to remove the engine quickly and check it for the most recent concern, which is powder metal contamination.
The collapse of GoAir this summer demonstrated just how badly a capacity shortage may result in fare increases. In addition to the ongoing uncertainty about PW engines for A320neos, the latest concern over B737 MAX is that there may be a significant increase in fares if the latter causes an increase in groundings.



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