Boeing Unveils 737 Max Software Fixes (cnbc.com)

hcs_$reboot shares a report from CNBC: Boeing previewed its software fix, cockpit alerts and additional pilot training for its 737 Max planes on Wednesday, saying the changes improve the safety of the aircraft which has been involved in two deadly crashes since October. By the end of this week, Boeing plans to send the software updates and plan for enhanced pilot training to the FAA for certification approval. After the FAA approves the fix, Boeing said it will send the software update to customers. Among the notable changes to the MAX flight controls:

• The plane's Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System, or MCAS, automated flight control system, will now receive data from both "angle of attack" sensors, instead of just one.
• If those disagree by more than 5.5 degrees, the MCAS system will be disabled and will not push the nose of the plane lower.
• Boeing will be adding an indicator to the flight control display so pilots are aware of when the angle of attack sensors disagree.
• There will also be enhanced training required for all 737 pilots so they are more fully aware of how the MCAS system works and how to disable it if they encounter an issue.

Comments

Re:Encouraging news. Still nervous.

[bobbied]

Oh for Pete's sake, this AGAIN?

There is NOTHING unique to this aircraft configuration that makes it inherently unstable. Other aircraft share the same tendency to pitch up on throttle up. This isn't some aerodynamic oddity unique to the MAX 8. ANY aircraft with engines under the wings will do exactly the same thing and we've flow aircraft in this configuration for decades, long before even the 737 was first built.

The trick here is knowing how to deal with how thrust changes pitch when you are flying the aircraft, and the only problem was Boeing's system to "help" the aircraft handle the same way as the older 737's. The aircraft is flyable and quite airworthy without this system, it's just different that a 737 pilot is used to. It's not unsafe to fly, it just flies differently and pilots need to be trained on this, not fooled into thinking it's a 737 by software...