United Airlines pilots said pedals that control rudder movement on the plane were stuck as they tried to keep the plane in the center of the runway during the Feb. 6 landing.
The pilots were able to use a small nose-gear steering wheel to veer from the runway to a high-speed turnoff. The rudder pedals began working again as the pilots taxied to the gate with 155 passengers and six crew members on the flight from Nassau, Bahamas, according to a preliminary report by the National Transportation Safety Board.
Boeing said this is the only rudder-response issue reported on a Max, although two similar incidents happened in 2019 with an earlier model of the 737 called NG or next generation, which has the same rudder-pedal system.
The manufacturer said the issue was fixed by replacing three parts. The plane has made dozens of passenger-carrying flights since then, according to data from FlightAware.
If you don’t maintain your fleet, eventually they’ll all fall out of the sky
Fleet maintenance is an airline responsibility.
The bolt situation was a Boeing responsibility.
These don’t really reflect on each other well.
The whole industry is structured to hold individuals accountable but not ownership… Think of the standards ATCs have to maintain. Pilot training hours. Why is that level of scrutiny not being applied to assets?
