South American pilot unions take news of Boeing software updates with caution
Since the grounding of the Boeing 737 Max after the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 320 accident on March 10, the Mexican, Brazilian and Argentinian pilots unions have read about the MAX software updates in the press. In this exclusive interview they shared their opinions on the matter and whether it will be enough to get the MAX flying again in Latin America.
By Tom Dieusaert*
The first domino to fall after the crash of the Ethiopian Airlines’ Boeing 737 Max was the decision by Chinese aviation regulators to ground all Max’s on Chinese territory. Soon, other regulators and airlines followed, eventually forcing the FAA and even Boeing itself to temporarily pull the plug on its medium and short-haul workhorse.
Both Boeing and the FAA announced investigations into the hugely controversial MCAS-feature, which was implicated in the Lion Air 610 crash and appears to have played a role in the Ethiopian Airlines accident five months later. The decision to ground the MAX planes occurred piecemeal since local regulators and airlines had to weigh the enormous financial losses flight cancellations would cause against public outrage and public demands for flight safety.
On March 11, Mexico aviation regulator DGAC declared the MAX fit to fly, only to review its decision barely 3 hours later when it became clear that more and more international carriers and agencies were blacklisting the plane. Something similar occurred that same day in Argentina, where local carrier Aerolíneas Argentinas insisted it had confidence in the Boeing 737 MAX. Later that same day, they reversed their decision after the Argentinian Pilots Union (APLA) announced their pilots would not fly the MAX until everything was cleared up.
Argentina
Unlike Europe, where pilot unions have clipped wings and pilots seldom dare to voice opinions on matters that exceed strict labor-related issues — leaving public quotes to some sterile press officer — pilots in Argentina are not afraid to speak out. They willingly share their opinions on plane manufacturers, aircraft designs and safety matters.
So, it was no surprise that Argentina was the first country where pilots themselves grounded the plane. After the FAA wilted under international pressure a few days later, the airline and the local regulator (ANAC) followed.
Martín Villagra, an Aerolineas Argentinas pilot and a member of the Asociación de Pilotos de Líneas Aéreas (APLA), held conversations with Mexican and Brazilian colleagues at Aeroméxico and Gol, before APLA suspended MAX flights. A few months earlier, Villagra had offered a harsh judgement on the automation features of the Boeing 737 MAX in an interview. He called the inclusion of the rogue MCAS software in the 737 by Boeing as nothing less than “treason.”
In the same interview, Villagra — who is also a member of the APLA Safety Committee — suggested an easy software fix that could solve the potentially dangerous MCAS actions. As it is now, the MCAS is inactive when Auto Pilot is on or when flaps are set, so Villagra suggested inhibiting the MCAS in case of conflicting air speed, altitude, or angle-of-attack readings. This would prevent the MCAS from activating in case a faulty sensor misinformed the plane’s computers that the aircraft was experiencing an upset.
Boeing finally took another route, deciding on updates reportedly agreed to by the FAA. One important fix suggested was compliance with redundancy, connecting the MCAS system with both Angle-of-Attack sensors (instead of just one). Furthermore, MCAS inputs on the elevator would be less pronounced and would last only 10 seconds instead of repeated nose down inputs as occurred on Lion Air Flight JT610.
“We haven’t been notified about the software updates on the MAX,” Villagra told me. “From what we have read in the press, I think the software fixes are for the better and I think when they become official we will be flying the MAX again. We are professionals and we want to fly it. But the necessary steps need to be taken, by the Argentinian aeronautical authority (ANAC) before the plane will be certified again.”
Do you agree with the software updates? “Apparently now the MCAS will be linked to the second Angle-of-Attack sensor which will make the system redundant.”
Villagra had no answer as to why this system wasn’t redundant in the first place. “The design process at Boeing is a mystery. But certainly there will be internal investigations and heads will roll.”
So what will happen next? Will the five 737 MAX’s owned by Aerolineas Argentinas be sent back to Seattle for an update? “Probably not,” says Villagra. “It’s much more reasonable and cheaper for Boeing to send technicians to Buenos Aires to make the necessary updates.”
Mexico
Aeromexico pilots were also looking into the safety issues after the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 320 crash.
The Mexican pilots were in close contact with ALPA when the latter decided not to fly the MAX until further notice. Like Villagra, Santiago Cadena, vice president of Colegio de Pilotos pilots association, is a real Boeing-man and flew both 737NG as 737 MAX for Aeromexico.
“I still believe in the Boeing philosophy of giving more authority to the pilot, instead of to the computer. In Airbus, you see the tendency toward automation and elimination of the pilot.”
So did Cadena feel betrayed by Boeing, as did Villlagra, when the existence of the MCAS was made public? “Not betrayed but very surprised yes. There was this new component, a new system and we didn’t know anything about it. There was a critical lack of information.”
Cadena and the Colegio de Pilotos union were recently informed of the software updates Boeing is implementing.
What is the position of the Mexican Union? “The first reaction is positive. We heard last weekend that American Airlines, Southwest and United pilots trained with the new MCAS feature on the simulator and all crews were able to land normally.”
Does this mean the Mexican pilots will approve the changes, like their Argentinian counterparts? “The important thing is that changes are not being rushed. All changes should be well analyzed and checked and approved by the respective authorities,” Cadena says, referring to the controversial MAX certification process, during which the new MCAS feature was concealed from view, apparently because Boeing’s desire to simplify crew training as it competed with Airbus for orders.
“Everything we get now — new information, training — should be official from the aircraft manufacturer, approved by state supervising bodies like FAA, EASA and DGAC in Mexico and then shared with the airlines,” Cadena said.
How long does he think this process will last? “I think we are looking at a couple of weeks.”
Brazil
Among the pilots of Gol Linhas Aéreas, the largest domestic Brazilian airline, caution is the catch word when it comes to considering whether or not to fly their seven Boeing 737 MAX planes.
“That decision was taken by the company but the union and the aeronautical authority was working together closely with the company to take that decision,” explains Marcelo Ceriotti of the Sindicato Nacional dos Aeronautas.
Does the Brazilian pilots union consider the changes on the MCAS software sufficient to get the plane flying again? “We are taking notice of the changes proposed by Boeing but up till now we don’t have a final opinion whether this will be enough to modify the risks caused by the flawed MCAS system,” Ceriotti says. “We believe that mitigating measures will enable us to resume operations with that model at some point, but we still cannot assess which measures will be enough (to ensure a safe operation).”
Simulators?
Another interesting fact is that unlike United or Southwest, neither Aeromexico, Aerolineas Argentinas or Gol has a Boeing 737 MAX simulator. And they won’t have any in the near future either since half a dozen planes does not justify the purchase of a new SIM.
Training for Boeing MAX emergency procedures will take place on the Boeing 737 NG simulator, probably with software updates. But how this will come about is not clear yet. “We don’t know whether Boeing will send instructors or software updates.” says Villagra, summing up the current uncertainty involving the Boeing 737 MAX.
- Tom Dieusaert is an investigative journalist and the author of Computer Crashes, when airplane systems fail (2017).
