FAA Certifies Boeing 737 MAX 7, Ending Years of Delay

Regulators clear Boeing’s smallest MAX jet after a years-long fight over a redesigned anti-ice system, handing Boeing a long-sought approval and Southwest Airlines a path to renew its aging fleet.

The Federal Aviation Administration issued an amended type certificate and updated Production Limitation Record for the Boeing 737 MAX 7 on Monday, clearing the smallest MAX variant for production and commercial service after nearly a decade of delay.

The approval marks the first 737 MAX variant approved under the tougher certification standards Congress imposed after fatal crashes of the 737 MAX 8 grounded the family worldwide in 2019, and it comes after the FAA overhauled how it oversees the manufacturer’s engineering work.

To win approval, Boeing had to satisfy requirements under the Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act of 2020 and recommendations from the National Transportation Safety Board. Those mandates pushed Boeing to update its flight-control software and flightcrew alerting system and install a redesigned engine anti-ice system.

The FAA said in a statement that it performed or directly reviewed significant work involving flight controls, system safety assessments, human factors and flightcrew alerting, requiring testing, design changes and additional analysis where necessary. The agency said safety inspectors will remain on site at Boeing production facilities across the country to monitor manufacturing and assess the company’s safety management system and safety culture.

“Following almost a decade of extensive review, the FAA has issued an amended type certificate and updated Production Limitation Record for the Boeing 737 MAX-7,” the FAA said in its statement. “The approval reflects years of sustained work to resolve complex technical issues and complete a thorough review of the airplane’s design and supporting safety analyses.”

Boeing shares were up 6.7% for the day, Reuters reported; CNBC and Agence France-Presse each put the gain at about 8% Monday.

Engine anti-ice fix at the center of the delay

The certification hinged largely on a flaw discovered during flight testing in the engine anti-ice system. Boeing engineers found that running the engine anti-ice system in dry air for more than five minutes could heat the engine inlet’s inner barrel beyond its material design limit, risking failure of the barrel and severe damage to the inlet cowl.

Boeing initially sought a regulatory exemption to certify the MAX 7 with the existing system but withdrew that request in January 2024 to engineer a permanent fix instead. That redesigned system is now certified and will be retrofitted across the in-service MAX 8 and MAX 9 fleets.

Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said the certification vindicates years of engineering work.

“This important certification validates the rigor of our airplane’s design and recognizes the determination and resilience of our 737 MAX development team,” Pope said. “Our team of dedicated engineers and test experts worked through challenges, an extended pandemic, and the transition to new certification processes. Through it all, our team stayed focused on completing all requirements and delivering a safe and more capable airplane to our customers.”

Mike Sinnett, Boeing’s senior vice president of product strategy, product development and development programs, said the company worked closely with regulators throughout the process.

“Our Boeing team held regular and detailed discussions with the FAA to ensure Boeing understood the requirements and provided transparency of our progress,” Sinnett said. He added that the experience should pay off on future programs: “With this certification program, Boeing has developed a clearer understanding of the latest regulatory requirements, which is expected to accelerate future airplane development with a renewed emphasis on human factors, safety and quality.”

The FAA said the new anti-ice design addresses the safety concern directly. “These changes provide pilots clearer information and warnings and prevent the engine inlet from overheating and potentially weakening the surrounding structure,” the agency said.

What the MAX 7 offers, and who’s buying

The MAX 7 seats between 135 and 160 passengers in a two-class configuration, with capacity up to 172 seats, and has a maximum range of 3,800 nautical miles. It completed its maiden flight in March 2018 and has logged more than 1,000 hours of flight and ground testing.

Boeing has built about 30 MAX 7s that are awaiting delivery, according to aviation analytics firm Cirium. Those aircraft must be modified to match the certified configuration and receive individual airworthiness certificates before delivery.

Southwest Airlines, the launch customer with 258 firm orders, is expected to need about six months to fold the aircraft into its manuals, training programs and operating specifications, pushing entry into commercial service into 2027. “Southwest Airlines is pleased with the FAA’s certification of the Boeing 737-7 aircraft and we look forward to the plane entering service in the coming months,” the airline said in a statement. Southwest’s published schedule, which runs through March 2027, does not yet include the MAX 7, Reuters reported.

Southwest flies an all-Boeing fleet and is counting on the smaller MAX 7 to replace its aging 737-700s. Chief Operating Officer Andrew Watterson has said the delay left the airline with the wrong mix of aircraft sizes, forcing it to deploy larger 175-seat MAX 8s and 737-800s at times and in markets where fewer seats would fit demand.

Other carriers with firm MAX 7 orders include Allegiant Air, with 24 aircraft; Luxair, with four; and Ruili Airlines and SkyUp Airlines, with two each.

A financial lift as Boeing ramps production

The certification lands as Boeing works to rebuild its finances. The company reported $631 million in free cash flow for the second quarter of 2026, even after absorbing a $280 million charge tied to the VC-25B Air Force One program and bracing for an expected $700 million Department of Justice payment in the third quarter. The company still posted a net loss of $428 million for the quarter.

Boeing Chief Financial Officer Jay Malave told analysts the company remains confident in its long-term goal of $10 billion in annual free cash flow, driven mainly by higher commercial deliveries, improving defense performance and growth in services.

Boeing CEO Kelly Ortberg said in May that the company passed an FAA “capstone review” clearing it to raise 737 MAX production to 47 aircraft a month. “We just recently had our capstone review with the FAA — new news here — we passed the capstone review for rate 47,” Ortberg said. “So we are now in the process of running the line at the 47-a-month rate.”

Ortberg has laid out plans to reach 52 aircraft a month with help from a newly activated fourth final assembly line in Everett, Washington, supplementing the historic Renton plant. On the company’s July 28 earnings call, he cautioned that pushing beyond that pace will test suppliers. “I think it’s going to get harder as we go from 52 to 57 and beyond that,” Ortberg said. “We’ll just have to see how well we’re all collectively doing, but look, we’re on our plan. Our plan’s working.”

Next up: the MAX 10

The MAX 7’s approval opens a direct path for certifying the larger MAX 10, which shares the redesigned anti-ice system and other regulatory architecture. Boeing has completed the final planned certification flights for the MAX 10 and anticipates FAA approval later this year, with deliveries to follow in 2027.

The MAX 10 carries far more weight for Boeing’s order book, accounting for at least 28% of Boeing’s outstanding MAX orders, according to Reuters, and serving as the company’s chief answer to the Airbus A321neo. Nine assembled MAX 10 aircraft are already awaiting delivery.