Walkaround

Boeing

737 MAX

MAX 7, MAX 8, MAX 9, MAX 10

in production CFM LEAP-1B 5 min read · updated 21 October 2026 · checked 21 October 2026

Two independent sources on every claim.

Boeing 737 MAX
Photo: AVA Navigate, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

At a glance

Type card

VariantsMAX 7, MAX 8, MAX 8200, MAX 9, MAX 10
EnginesCFM International LEAP-1B
Typical seating138 to 204 depending on variant
AssemblyRenton, Washington, with a second line at Everett
StatusIn production
CertifiedMAX 8 in 2017, MAX 9 in 2018, MAX 7 in August 2026, MAX 10 in October 2026

Program and production

Ortberg told investors at the Morgan Stanley Laguna conference on 16 September that Boeing is "not stable yet" at 47 single aisle aircraft per month. That matters because the FAA lifted its production cap and cleared Boeing to move to 47 back in May 2026, so the constraint is no longer regulatory. It is industrial, and Ortberg named the specific problem: Boeing's own wing manufacturing operation at Renton, rather than the outside supply chain the company has pointed to for most of the past two years.

Rate 52 by the end of 2026, a target Boeing set for itself, now looks out of reach, and the company is guiding to 52 per month sometime in 2027. Boeing's own count, published 13 October 2026, put September MAX deliveries at 43 aircraft, with the third quarter closing at 124 and the year to date total at 367, the highest nine month figure since deliveries began in 2017. That is still short of the 47 a month target, a gap Reuters reported Ortberg as calling "not stable yet."

Certification had been the better news. The FAA granted the amended type certificate for the 737-7 on 3 August 2026. A flight management computer software defect, detailed under Technical and maintenance below, held up MAX 10 certification from 28 September until the FAA cleared it on 2 October, reopening the path to certification. The FAA then issued the MAX 10's own amended type certificate on 20 October, the agency said in a newsroom release, with Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announcing the decision at Boeing's Everett plant. Boeing said the certificate meets the full requirements of the 2020 Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act, passed after the 2018 and 2019 MAX accidents, and covers a Production Limitation Record authorizing manufacture of the variant. First deliveries of both the MAX 7 and MAX 10 are still targeted for 2027, since production and delivery readiness, not the paperwork, now set the pace.

Technical and maintenance

The most significant technical item this cycle is a flight management computer software defect Boeing disclosed on 26 September 2026. Boeing said the defect can cause the flight guidance system to drop out of vertical navigation, its most automated pitch control mode, into a simpler mode during a go around in which the crew has changed the programmed flight path with the autopilot engaged. Boeing found the issue in November 2024, judged it not safety significant at the time, and notified operators about a month ago.

In plain terms

Vertical navigation, or VNAV, is the flight computer function that flies the climb, descent and approach path automatically. Losing it mid approach does not disable the autopilot, but it hands the pilot more of the workload at an already busy moment.

The FAA convened a Corrective Action Review Board, the process it uses to decide whether a post certification finding needs mandatory action. On 28 September, Administrator Bryan Bedford told reporters in Washington that the review would hold up MAX 10 certification specifically over this defect: "We haven't concluded whether this is a safety of flight issue or not, but we will be delaying the ten until we're satisfied that we don't have an issue here." Bedford said the affected software, versions 14 and 14.1 of the flight management computer, is supplied by GE Aerospace.

The board concluded its review on 2 October 2026, finding no safety of flight risk because pilots retain full control and cockpit indications during the affected scenario stay clear and unambiguous, according to CNBC and Bloomberg. No Airworthiness Directive has followed.

On the line

No inspection or compliance action applies, and none is now expected for this specific finding. The affected software, versions 14 and 14.1, remains in service fleet wide, so continue reinforcing go around procedure familiarity for MAX crews pending Boeing's permanent fix, originally planned for 2028 and now being brought forward.

A separate item is the bear strap Airworthiness Directive, adopted 6 August 2026 and effective 10 September, covering cracking risk in the fuselage reinforcement around the forward galley door cutout on 737-8, 737-9 and 737-8200 models. It reaches 471 US registered aircraft and about 1,429 worldwide, with a related repetitive inspection directive effective 22 October.

On the line

Aircraft that already carry a repair in that area need their records pulled, since a prior repair changes what the inspection asks for. Build the repetitive interval into the check package now.

A further, unrelated item followed on 21 September 2026: a proposed Airworthiness Directive for the 737-8, 737-9 and 737-8200 covering elevator buss assembly bearings that may have been installed without sealant. It is not yet in effect, covers 95 US registered aircraft, and comments remain open until 5 November 2026, with no in service failure confirmed.

On the line

Check serial numbers built in the affected production window against Boeing's Alert RB now, rather than waiting for the AD to become mandatory.

Orders and operators

Combined orders for the MAX 7 and MAX 10 now exceed 1,700 aircraft, so the certification of both variants unlocks a large part of the backlog. Southwest is the anchor customer for the MAX 7 and United for the MAX 10.

Turkish Airlines finalised an order for up to 150 737 MAX aircraft on 23 September 2026, its largest Boeing single aisle order to date.

Delivery volume remains the constraint on fleet planning rather than order intake. Operators waiting on MAX 7 and MAX 10 aircraft have spent several years extending leases on older equipment, and nothing in the current rate picture suggests that pressure eases before 2027.

Safety

No new accident investigations involving the type opened in this period. The flight management computer software defect was closed out as a continued airworthiness matter, not a safety of flight finding, per the FAA review above. The bear strap cracking behind the August Airworthiness Directive remains a separate continued airworthiness matter.

Sources