Boeing has notified airlines of a software issue on its 737 MAX jets that can shut down automated flight guidance during a go-around, leaving pilots to fly the aircraft manually without some autopilot functions.
The problem surfaced from a cockpit software update and can appear on a precision approach when the autopilot is engaged. If a missed approach becomes necessary, the flight management computer can disengage the automated guidance system. Pilots then have no choice but to take over by hand.
Daily Mail reporting on the matter, drawing from Wall Street Journal coverage, shows Boeing first learned of the glitch in November 2024. The company told operators in late August that the malfunction does not pose a safety risk, yet it still launched a formal safety review after airlines raised similar concerns.
Regulators and carriers are now assessing whether the issue creates a real flight-safety problem. A permanent software fix is not scheduled until early 2028. More guidance from Boeing was expected in November.
United Airlines and Southwest Airlines asked Boeing not to deliver new 737 MAX jets equipped with the affected software. Both carriers requested earlier software versions instead. United, Southwest, Alaska Airlines, and American Airlines all said none of their current planes carry the glitching software.
American and Delta hold orders for the still-uncertified MAX 10. Cirium aviation data cited in the coverage puts 2,422 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and 9 models in service worldwide. Boeing is still working on an accurate count of how many already fly with the flawed update. Airlines must notify the company if they install the upgrade.
Passengers who rely on commercial aviation every day have little patience left for repeated surprises in the cockpit. That same demand for basic accountability shows up when TSA officers stop fake ID stash next to Xbox at LaGuardia before passenger boards and keep unauthorized travelers off planes.
A Boeing spokesperson told reporters the company shared information that reinforced existing pilot procedures.
“We shared information with operators that reinforced existing pilot procedures for safely handling such cases.”
The same spokesperson added that engineers are already on the permanent fix.
“Our engineers are working on a software update to permanently address the issue.”
An FAA spokesperson said the agency knows about the potential problem in the flight-computer software on certain 737 MAX airplanes and is working closely with Boeing and the airlines. The FAA will convene a Corrective Action Review Board and will act at once if it finds a safety concern.
Official reviews matter. So does public pressure when government decisions affect safety systems, as seen when a federal judge declares Trump administration’s plan to halve FEMA workforce unlawful and forces the issue into open court.
The 737 MAX already carries a heavy record. Two fatal crashes in 2018 and 2019 killed 346 people and grounded the fleet worldwide. In January 2024 a door panel blew off an Alaska Airlines 737-9 MAX mid-flight; investigators blamed manufacturing mistakes.
Each new disclosure lands against that backdrop. Boeing says this latest software issue does not create a safety risk. Airlines still refused new deliveries with the update. The FAA is investigating. The permanent patch sits years away.
Aviation security questions rarely stay confined to one airframe. Coverage of sensitive flight operations can itself become a fight, much like the case in which the DOJ subpoenas New York Times reporters over Air Force One security coverage.
No one has stated how many jets currently fly with the flawed software. No named engineers or executives have spoken beyond the company and FAA spokespeople. No formal airworthiness directive appears in the available statements. The exact technical failure mode beyond the disengagement of automated guidance has not been laid out in detail.
Boeing, the FAA, and the airlines continue to assess the issue. Operators have been told to fall back on existing manual procedures if the guidance drops out during a go-around. The company is counting affected aircraft and preparing further guidance.
Travelers expect the planes they board to behave as designed, especially in the high-workload moments of an aborted landing. When software updates introduce new failure points and the lasting repair is scheduled years out, the burden falls on crews and passengers who never asked for the experiment.
Common sense still requires that critical flight systems work the first time, every time, without forcing pilots into improvised manual workarounds while regulators and manufacturers debate the calendar.
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