On Wednesday it was known that the Aviación Nacional de Aviación Civil of Argentina (ANAC) lifted the restrictions on the operation of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 and 737 MAX 9 in the country, after having analyzed and accepted the measures developed by Boeing and approved by the Federal Aviation Administration.
But besides the decision of the Argentinian aeronautical authority, the country’s main pilot union (Asociación de Pilotos de Líneas Aéreas – APLA) has stated that the mandate for its affiliates not to take services on flights operated with these aircraft which was established on March 11, 2019, is still in force. The union issued such a mandate right after the accident of the Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302, as a precautionary measure given the indecision of the ANAC management at that time on whether or not to ground the model. On that occasion, APLA had even sent a legal inquiry to the agency so that they take «measures to guarantee the safety of the crews and passengers.»
The union emphasized the validity of that mandate, so Aerolíneas Argentinas´ MAXs wouldn´t operate again until it is lifted. «Reaffirming our commitment to the safety of operations, we are following all stages to guarantee the effectiveness of the defense barriers and mitigations adopted regarding the risk factors that motivated this mandate» reported APLA through a statement.
«For this reason, we are in talks with the company to articulate a minimum activity and instruction plan that provides the operational guarantees necessary for the return to service of the Boeing 737 MAX» they concluded.
Sources familiar with the issue told Aviacionline that the intention is to achieve an instruction plan that improves the one sent by Boeing and the FAA, and that was signed by ANAC. Aerolíneas Argentinas has five 737 MAX 8s in its fleet and was the first operator of the fourth generation of the 737 in Latin America.
The process of recertification of the MAX by the FAA ended on November 18, 2020. Since then, several countries have gradually followed the measure. GOL was the first airline in the world to fly them again on a regular schedule on December 9. In Latin America and the Caribbean, they have also already been returned to service by Aeroméxico, Cayman Airways and Copa Airlines.
