American Airlines flight with 95 passengers and 6 crew lands safely; 737 MAX aircraft have been under scrutiny for years.
American Airlines Co said Friday that a Boeing 737 MAX bound for Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey had declared an emergency after the captain shut down an engine due to a possible mechanical problem.
American’s Flight 2555 from Miami with 95 passengers and six crew landed safely in Newark without incident, the airline said.
The potential issue was related to an engine oil pressure or volume indicator and not the result of something related to the MCAS system related to two fatal 737 MAX crashes in 2018 and 2019 that triggered the 20-month grounding the plane, it said.
The 737 Max has been under scrutiny for a while. Aviation authorities around the world grounded 737 Max aircraft in March 2019 after fatal crashes with the aircraft model in Ethiopia and off the coast of Indonesia, which occurred within five months of each other.
Boeing said it was aware of the US flight and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it will investigate.
American was the first US carrier to resume 737 MAX flights late last year after the FAA approved security updates by Boeing.
When it cleared the plane to fly again, FAA administrator Steve Dickson said he was confident the jet was safe, but warned that in-flight mechanical problems occasionally occur with all commercial airliners.
“For that reason, it is inevitable that a Boeing 737 MAX will return to its original airport, divert or land at its destination sometime in the future with an actual or suspected in-flight problem,” he said.
The FAA is evaluating all events involving a US airline, he said at the time, adding, “It is very important to distinguish between these routine events that happen with any aircraft and the acute safety concerns that led to the loss of life and the running of the MAX. . “