FAA Certifies Boeing 737-10 MAX, Clearing Largest MAX Variant for Delivery

The Federal Aviation Administration on Tuesday granted type certification to Boeing’s 737-10 MAX, clearing the largest member of the 737 MAX family for commercial service after a certification campaign that stretched years beyond the original target.

The approval, signed during a ceremony at Boeing’s 737 MAX production line in Everett, Washington, comes in the form of an amended type certificate and also includes an updated Production Limitation Record authorizing the company to build the aircraft. Boeing said it expects to begin deliveries “in the coming months.”

“Completing the certification program clears the path for us to deliver a Boeing airplane that will set a new standard in commercial aviation,” Stephanie Pope, president and CEO of Boeing Commercial Airplanes, said in a statement. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who attended the Everett event, called the approval “a major win for American manufacturing and our nation’s status as a global aviation powerhouse.”

The 737-10 was launched at the Paris Air Show in 2017 and first flew on June 18, 2021, when Boeing was still targeting entry into service in 2023. The program instead faced tighter regulatory scrutiny following the two 737 MAX 8 crashes in 2018 and 2019, and further reviews tied to flight-control systems and cockpit alerting. The aircraft now completes the certification of all four MAX variants, following FAA clearance of the smaller 737-7 in August 2026.

As a condition of approval, the FAA required the 737-10 to incorporate an enhanced angle of attack system a key improvement mandated under the 2020 Aircraft Certification, Safety, and Accountability Act and NTSB recommendations. Faulty angle of attack readings contributed to both fatal MAX crashes. Boeing says the new system monitors sensor behavior, detects suspect readings, and prevents erroneous data from reaching other aircraft systems or substitutes a default value; an alert on the pilots’ primary flight displays identifies the affected sensor. The enhanced angle of attack system will become standard across the 737 MAX family, Boeing said.

The certification campaign involved nearly 1,000 flights, more than 2,000 flight-test hours, and 1,000 hours of ground testing, according to Boeing. Boeing also noted that the 737-10 is the first commercial aircraft certified to the full extent of the 2020 reform law, which imposed new requirements for documenting safety assessments and human-factors evaluations.

The 737-10 typically seats 185 to 210 passengers in a two-class configuration, with a maximum of 230 seats, and offers a range of up to 3,100 nautical miles, or 5,740 kilometers. Boeing positions the aircraft as offering the lowest per-seat operating costs of any single-aisle jet in service, and it is seen as the company’s primary competitive response to the Airbus A321neo.

Boeing has booked 1,555 orders for the 737-10 from more than 30 customers, representing more than 30% of the 737 MAX program’s unfilled order book. WestJet is currently the frontrunner to receive the first delivery, with its lessor, Aviation Capital Group, confirming that its first 737-10 is scheduled to go to the Canadian carrier; WestJet is targeting entry into service in the first quarter of 2027. Ryanair expects to receive 16 aircraft in early 2027 and holds 150 firm orders plus 150 options. Delta Air Lines, Alaska Airlines, and United Airlines also hold significant orders and expect deliveries during the year.

European certification is the next regulatory step. The European Union Aviation Safety Agency said FAA approval “provides the trigger” for it to finalize validation of the 737-10 for the European market, with the final sequential steps expected to take a few months.