FAA poised to say pilots don’t need fresh 737 Max simulator training

S. aviation regulators are increasingly convinced they don’t need to mandate new simulator training for pilots of Boeing’s 737 Max before returning the grounded jet to service, according to people familiar with the discussions. Pilots would be required instead to take a computer-based training course they could perform at home or in a classroom, according to the people. More extensive simulator-based training for all 737 Max pilots may be required in the months after flights resume, the people said. Such a decision would help streamline the return of the plane linked to two fatal crashes and mired in multiple investigations and spare airlines millions of dollars in costs. But it would run contrary to demands by relatives of the victims and some pilots such as Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, who crash-landed an airliner in New York’s Hudson River in 2009, and may make it harder to reassure a skeptical public of the plane’s safety. The FAA hasn’t concluded its reviews of Boeing’s proposed software changes to the plane and current thinking could change, according to the people familiar with the discussions. An FAA advisory panel, which issued a preliminary finding in April that simulator training wasn’t necessary to return the plane to service, is reviewing public comments and also hasn’t reached a final opinion. “The FAA still hasn’t made a final decision,” said agency spokesman Lynn Lunsford. “It’s one of the many things we’re still evaluating.” Story has more details.<br/>