On February 3, 2025, the Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA), the largest airline pilots’ union in the world, formally opposed a recent exemption request made by Boeing to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) concerning the certification of the 737 Max 7 and Max 10 aircraft. Boeing, seeking to expedite the long-delayed certification process for these two variants of its popular narrow-body jet family, requested a temporary exemption from certain regulatory standards related to the stall-management yaw damper (SMYD) system. This system, an electronic unit responsible for stall warning, stall identification, and yaw damper functions, has been a point of contention as Boeing works to bring these aircraft to market amid heightened scrutiny of its safety practices. ALPA’s opposition underscores ongoing concerns within the aviation community about balancing safety with the commercial pressures facing the aerospace giant.
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Boeing’s exemption request, filed on January 17, 2025, and made public by the FAA four days later, seeks relief from rules stipulating that system failures capable of preventing safe flight and landing must be “extremely improbable.” The company argued that granting the exemption, valid through October 31, 2028, would allow faster certification and delivery of the Max 7 and Max 10 while enabling the rollout of an enhanced angle-of-attack (AOA) system across all Max variants. This enhanced AOA system, designed to improve safety by reducing pilot workload during air data or AOA sensor failures, was a response to the fatal 737 Max 8 crashes in 2018 and 2019, which killed 346 people and exposed vulnerabilities in the aircraft’s original design. Boeing emphasized that the SMYD software for the Max 7 and Max 10 has undergone extensive testing, asserting that it poses no immediate safety risk based on the system’s track record across over 270 million flight hours in the 737 Next Generation and earlier Max models.
However, ALPA has taken a firm stance against this proposal, arguing that the SMYD system’s certification should be fully completed before the aircraft enters service. In a letter to the FAA, the union expressed concern that the exemption would permit the software to operate under a reduced reliability threshold—specifically, maintaining its current “Level B” certification rather than the more stringent “Level A” standard now deemed necessary by both Boeing and the FAA. Historically, the SMYD was certified to Level B under guidance from the Radio Technical Commission for Aeronautics, a standard applied to previous 737 models like the Max 8 and Max 9. During the MAX 7’s development, updated analyses revealed that the system’s potential failure risks warranted the higher Level A classification, which Boeing admits it cannot yet meet without further certification work. ALPA contends that approving the exemption for 3.5 years, as Boeing requested, compromises safety by delaying this critical upgrade.
The union’s position reflects broader anxieties about Boeing’s certification timeline, which has faced repeated setbacks. The Max 7 and Max 10, intended to compete with Airbus’s A320neo family, remain uncertified years after their initial projected entry into service, a delay compounded by technical challenges and regulatory hurdles following the Max crashes. Boeing insists that the exemption would not adversely affect safety, citing the SMYD’s proven reliability and the absence of reported yaw-damper malfunctions in over 25 years of operation. The company also highlighted that the exemption would accelerate the deployment of safety enhancements across the in-service Max fleet, a point it believes strengthens its case. Nevertheless, ALPA remains unconvinced, urging the FAA to reject the request and ensure that all systems meet the highest standards before the aircraft carry passengers. This standoff between Boeing and ALPA arrives at a time when the manufacturer is under intense scrutiny following a January 5, 2025, incident involving a 737 Max 9, where a mid-air fuselage blowout reignited debates over its safety culture. The Foundation for Aviation Safety, a nonprofit led by Boeing whistleblower Ed Pierson, has also voiced opposition to the exemption, echoing ALPA’s call for rigorous certification. As the FAA considers Boeing’s request, the decision will likely have significant implications for the Max 7 and Max 10 programs, potentially affecting delivery schedules for major customers like Southwest Airlines and United Airlines, which have substantial orders for these jets. For now, ALPA’s resistance signals a broader push within the industry to prioritize passenger safety over expediency, reinforcing the lessons learned from the 737 Max’s troubled history.