Boeing MAX 10 Ends Flight Tests; 777-9 Still Testing for 2027

Boeing’s two major jets once expected to enter airline service in 2020 are taking different paths toward planned 2027 debuts. The 737 MAX 10 completed its certification flights on July 28, leaving safety analyses and regulatory reviews, while the larger 777-9 remains inside a substantially broader flight-test campaign.

The distinction matters because completing certification flights is not the same as receiving a type certificate. The MAX 10 has moved from gathering flight data toward demonstrating, through documentation and analysis, that its design complies with applicable requirements. The 777-9 must still generate more test evidence for an aircraft whose new wing, engines, cockpit and folding wingtips all require evaluation.

MAX 10 shifts from flying to safety reviews

The MAX 10 completed nearly 1,000 certification flights and more than 2,000 flight hours. Its remaining work includes Development Assurance Reviews, system-safety assessments and FAA examination of the accumulated evidence. Certification could come as soon as fall 2026, with launch operator WestJet expecting to place the aircraft in service during the first quarter of 2027.

Those reviews are not merely administrative signoffs. Development assurance examines whether the processes used to design and verify complex aircraft systems provide sufficient confidence that errors have been identified and controlled. System-safety assessments evaluate potential failures, their effects and whether the design meets the required safety objectives.

The MAX 10 also incorporates redesigned engine anti-ice hardware and software. Boeing completed that system in November 2025 after a potential issue identified in 2023 showed that prolonged anti-ice operation in dry conditions could overheat the engine inlet and potentially weaken surrounding nacelle structure. An updated crew-alerting system is also required.

The recently certified MAX 7 provides an important regulatory reference point because it incorporates related changes. In its August 3 certification statement, the FAA said its MAX 7 review covered flight controls, human factors, flight-crew alerting and system-safety assessments, along with the redesigned engine anti-ice system. That approval does not automatically certify the MAX 10, but it confirms that the shared solutions have passed FAA review on another MAX variant.

Related anti-ice and crew-alerting changes are also expected to extend beyond the two uncertified variants. Previously certified MAX 8 and MAX 9 aircraft are expected to receive corresponding changes, including retrofits for aircraft already operating. That turns the certification work into a fleet-integration task involving production planning, modification packages and airline maintenance scheduling.

The 777-9 has a wider certification boundary

The 777-9 campaign is larger in both recorded activity and design scope. Its test fleet has logged more than 1,700 flights and 4,800 flight hours, yet the aircraft remains in testing. A seventh test aircraft recently began work associated with demonstrating the long-range operating capabilities required for extended flights away from suitable diversion airports.

The 777-9 is proceeding through Phase 4B of the FAA’s Type Inspection Authorization process and through extended-operations testing. Unlike a derivative whose principal systems already have an established certification basis, the 777-9 is the first variant in its family to seek approval. The FAA therefore must evaluate its new composite wing, cockpit, engines and folding wingtips as an integrated aircraft.

That systems boundary helps explain why raw flight-hour totals do not provide a simple measure of proximity to approval. A test campaign must cover specified conditions and produce acceptable results, while the supporting analyses must show that individual components, software and crew interfaces continue to work safely together. The folding wingtips, for example, are not just a visible mechanical feature; their operation and associated indications must be considered within the aircraft’s broader control and alerting architecture.

The current projection places the 777-9 type certificate in late 2026 or early 2027, with deliveries beginning in the second quarter of 2027. Lufthansa expects to introduce the aircraft during the 2027 summer season.

Production adds another layer of work. Some 777-9s built earlier in the prolonged program require rework because Boeing introduced design changes after their initial assembly. Emirates and Lufthansa have publicly declined to accept reworked early-production aircraft, creating a practical separation between achieving certification and delivering aircraft in configurations customers will accept.

The MAX 10 is now closer to a regulatory decision because its flight campaign is complete. The 777-9 still has more airborne certification work and a wider set of new systems to clear. For both aircraft, however, the seven-year move from their original 2020 service schedules to 2027 will end only when regulatory approval, production conformity and airline-ready deliveries align.

By Thomas Caldwell — AMI’s senior editor for mechanical and mobility engineering, covering vehicle electronics, systems integration, electrification, chassis systems, propulsion, and safety policy.