FAA analysis predicted many more Max crashes without a fix

After the first crash of a Boeing 737 Max last year, federal safety officials estimated that there could be 15 more fatal crashes of the Max over the next few decades if Boeing didn’t fix a critical automated flight-control system. Yet the FAA did not ground the plane until a second deadly crash five months later. The FAA analysis was disclosed Wednesday during a hearing of the House Transportation Committee, which is investigating the FAA’s oversight of Boeing and the Max. “The FAA rolled the dice on the safety of the traveling public and let the Max continue to fly until Boeing could overhaul its MCAS software,” said Peter DeFazio, D-Ore., the chairman of the committee. The FAA estimate covered the lifespan of the Max and assumed the fleet would eventually grow to 4,800 planes. Fewer than 400 were flying before they were grounded in March, after the second crash. The head of the FAA said his agency controls the process of approving the return to service of the troubled plane and won't delegate any of that authority to Boeing. FAA Administrator Stephen Dickson defended the safety record of U.S. aviation safety while saying “what we have done in the past and what we are doing now will not be good enough in the future.”<br/>