737 MAX COMES BACK: What you need to know as the plane returns after a disastrous 2 years on the ground

737 MAX COMES BACK: What you need to know as the plane returns after a disastrous 2 years on the ground

The FAA has cleared the Boeing 737 Max to fly passengers again, with airlines expected to reintroduce the plane as early as the end of this year.







Reuters



















The Boeing 737 Max, the latest generation of the storied plane-maker's 60-year-old workhorse, has been an unmitigated disaster. But after nearly two years on the ground, the 737 Max is coming back.

The FAA issued an airworthiness directive on Wednesday lifting a March 2019 grounding order on the Max. US airlines will have to install fixes to the planes' flight computers before their Max fleets can actually fly, and must submit pilot training programs to the FAA for approval.

The global fleet of just under 400 Max jets were grounded after the second of two fatal crashes, which killed 346 people. Now, as the 737 is cleared to fly again and airlines work to bring their Max jets from storage back into service, questions remain: Can Boeing sell the plane again? Will passengers will be willing to fly on it?

Those answers are for another time. But for now, familiarize yourself with how