Report: China clears Boeing 737 Max to fly again

A Chinese news outlet says regulators have cleared the Boeing 737 Max to fly again with technology upgrades more than two years after the plane was grounded worldwide following two fatal crashes

China Boeing 737 Max (Copyright 2021 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

China’s aviation regulator cleared the Boeing 737 Max on Thursday to return to flying with technical upgrades more than two years after the plane was grounded worldwide following two fatal crashes, a news outlet reported.

Chinese pilots will need to complete new training before commercial flights can begin, China Aviation Daily said, citing the Civil Aviation Administration of China. Phone calls to the regulator weren’t answered.

The report displayed a copy of the CAAC's airworthiness directive.

China is the last major market where the Boeing 737 Max was awaiting approval after the United States allowed flights to resume in December 2020 and European Union regulators gave permission in January. Brazil and Canada also have given approval.

Governments grounded the Boeing 737 Max after a total of 246 people were killed in the crashes of a Lion Air flight in Indonesia on Oct. 29, 2018, and an Ethiopian Airlines flight on March 10, 2019.

Investigators blamed a computer system that pushed the plane's nose downward in flight and couldn't be overridden by pilots.

Boeing Co. was required to redesign the system and pilots will need to be trained on the new technology.