FAA approves inspection process to clear way for grounded Boeing planes

Federal regulators have approved an inspection process that will let airlines resume flying their Boeing 737 Max 9 jetliners, which have been grounded since a side panel blew out of a plane in midflight earlier this month.
The head of the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday that his agency’s review of the scary incident on board an Alaska Airlines Boeing jet gave him confidence to clear a path for the planes to fly again.
The official, Mike Whitaker, said the FAA would not agree to any Boeing request to expand production of Max planes until the agency is satisfied that quality-control concerns have been addressed.
This won’t be back to business as usual for Boeing, Whitaker vowed.
The production limits will apply only to the Max, of which there are currently two models, the 8 and the 9. Boeing builds about 30 a month but has wanted to raise production for some time.
Boeing said it will work with the FAA and the airlines to get the grounded planes back in the air.
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