Overview
- The Federal Aviation Administration approved the 737 MAX 10 in a decision announced Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026, at Boeing’s Everett, Washington, plant by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy.
- Boeing said the jet completed an extensive test program with nearly 1,000 test flights and thousands of flight and ground hours and that the 737‑10 is the first commercial airplane certified to the full 2020 Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act standards.
- Regulators reviewed a recently disclosed navigation and flight‑management software glitch and judged it did not pose a safety‑of‑flight issue, allowing certification to move forward without that fix as a condition of approval.
- The MAX 10 represents about 30 percent of Boeing’s unfilled 737 backlog with roughly 1,500 orders from carriers including United, Alaska, Delta, American and Ryanair, making certification a key commercial milestone for Boeing.
- Airlines and regulators still must complete months of airline integration work and individual airworthiness approvals before passenger service begins, and the program remains under close public and FAA scrutiny because of past MAX crashes and recent manufacturing problems.