FAA chief, Steve Dickson flew alone in the 737 Max to test the aircraft and he indicated that he is very satisfied with the 737 Max but recertification is not released yet. The agency is still working with other regulators to get the MAX in the air.

Before testing the aircraft, Steve Dickson had spent a multiple days in Seattle doing some pilot training. Boeing proposed and the Joint Operations Evaluation Board (JOEB) assessed and analyzed as part of its inquiry into the MAX.

With the test flight completed, Chief Dickson held a press conference on the 737 MAX and he commented the following:

Shortly after I took the helm at the FAA, I made a promise that I would fly the 737 MAX and that I wouldn’t sign off on its return until I was comfortable putting my family on it. I took the same training, beginning last weekend and into this week, that the JOEB looked at during its work at London-Gatwick Airport in recent days. This was followed by a session in the 737 simulator, during which I had the opportunity to experience a variety of problems that presented the relevant emergencies that might occur. Today I flew a similar flight profile in the aircraft itself.

Dickson asked a question about whether or not he would put his family on the MAX, stating he was using his knowledge as a pilot to continue the dialogue and to continue to improve the MAX, understand the aircraft, and recertify the it.

He stated that the 737 MAX was in the final course although he didn’t put a specific date on it. In addition, he anticipates the FAA will be aligned with other global regulators, including the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and Canadian Transportation Agency. They are doing their best to get the aircraft in service as early as November.

There is still at least a month or more of work left to do, which implies that the MAX could be back in business administration before the finish of 2020. However, eventually, the FAA and controllers will settle on that choice.