Boeing Pilots Reportedly Did Not Receive Key Details on 737 MAX Control System

Two Boeing jetliners, both 737 MAX models, crashed within a half a year; this has led to extensive public interest in the investigation of the incidents and the US aircraft producer's efforts to update its software.

Boeing limited the involvement of its own pilots in the last phases of the development of 737 MAX flight control system, MCAS, linked to earlier deadly jet crashes, The Wall Street Journal reported on Friday citing its sources. 

This reportedly led to the failure to supply the pilots who contributed to the jet's development with briefings outlining the specifics of the control system. 

READ MORE: Boeing Takes $1Bln Hit Amid Grounding of 737 MAX Planes — CFO

It is noteworthy that previously the company provided a larger role to pilots and used to seek input from them.

The Wall Street Journal's claim follows Boeing Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg's statement made last month that new anti-crash software on 737 Boeing MAX jets had successfully completed trial runs on 120 test flights with a total duration of 230 hours.

The US aircraft producer started to investigate its jets after two Boeing 737 MAX aircraft crashed over the past six months — one in Indonesia in October 2018 and another in Ethiopia in March. In the wake of the latest crash, aviation authorities and carriers around the world have either grounded all 737 MAX series aircraft or closed their airspace to them.

The investigations into the incidents are underway but experts believe that the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System could be responsible for the crashes.