By David Shepardson
WASHINGTON, Oct 14 (Reuters) – US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy on Wednesday is meeting with the CEOs of major aerospace companies including Boeing and GE on his efforts to reform new aircraft certification, officials said.
On Sept. 30, Duffy said he wants to speed certification of new airplanes from Boeing and other manufacturers, citing competition concerns from China. Approving a new airplane can take five or more years and require substantial testing and data and extensive documentation. The Federal Aviation Administration in June proposed changes to modernize and speed certification of new commercial airplanes.
A spokesperson for Duffy confirmed he was meeting with industry executives. Boeing and GE declined to comment.
“If we can’t move at a different pace in certification, we’re going to lose. China is going to beat us. We’re going to lose not because you don’t have the innovation,” Duffy told reporters last month, warning that private capital is not going to invest in innovation because it is going to take a decade for approvals.
The effort could be a boost to manufacturers like Boeing Airbus Embraer and Bombardier.
It took Boeing over eight years to get the smaller 737 MAX 7 certified, which was finally approved in August. The certification of the 777x is more than five years behind Boeing’s original schedule.
FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford has pushed for reforms to certification and disclosed earlier this year the agency has a few projects working with industry “to see how they can streamline the process.”
The prior FAA head, Mike Whitaker, told Reuters in 2024 that the agency was looking at using better technology to streamline the process.
Reuters first reported the FAA’s planned changes in September, disclosing the agency planned to reduce the number of “exemptions, special conditions, and equivalent level of safety findings required during the certification process.”
Duffy also urged more entrants in commercial space. “It needs to be more vibrant. We need more competition, more players,” Duffy said, adding the government is also trying to move faster in space to speed innovation.
(Reporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Nick Zieminski)
