Boeing delivers first 737 MAX to Malaysia's Malindo Air

TIN news:  Boeing delivered the first 737 MAX 8 to Malaysia's Malindo Air May 16 at Boeing’s Seattle Delivery Center in Washington state. The airline will be the first to put the 737 MAX into commercial service.

The delivery comes a day after Boeing resumed flights of 737 MAX aircraft using CFM International LEAP-1B engines unaffected by an issue that prompted a suspension of all MAX flying last week.

Boeing suspended all 737 MAX flights May 10 after being informed by CFM, a GE Aviation/Safran Aircraft Engines joint venture, of a potential issue with the aircraft’s LEAP-1B engine. The suspension was implemented “out of an abundance of caution,” Boeing had said at the time.

The potential issue, discovered during a quality inspection by CFM of an engine in a factory, is with low pressure turbine (LPT) discs. But CFM has double or triple sourced 80% of the LEAP engine’s outsourced components, and has two LPT suppliers. Only one supplier’s LPTs are at issue.

Regulators cleared Boeing to resume flights with LEAP-1B engines containing LPTs from the unaffected supplier even as inspections of engines with LPTs from the affected supplier continue.

Malindo Air CEO Chandran Rama Muthy said, “The Boeing 737NG fleet has served Malindo well in its growth and we believe that the 737 MAX will become the centerpiece of our fleet. These new aircraft will allow us to go to further destinations and will play a key role in providing lower air fares to our customers.”