Boeing discovers debris inside fuel tanks of 737 MAX planes, calls it "unacceptable"

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Boeing 737 MAX fleet was grounded on 14 March 2019

American plane maker Boeing has discovered debris contaminating the fuel tanks of "several" 737 MAX planes that were built in the past year.

The US planemaker said it discovered so-called "Foreign Object Debris" left inside the wing fuel tanks of several undelivered 737 Maxs. [BBC]

Recall that the two fatal crashes that killed 346 people left Boeing's 737 Max grounded since March 2019. [Sky News]

Following the discovery, Boeing 737's programme head has expressed displeasure to employees by saying that the discovery was "absolutely unacceptable".

A company spokesman told the BBC: "While conducting maintenance we discovered Foreign Object Debris (FOD) in undelivered 737 Max airplanes currently in storage. That finding led to a robust internal investigation and immediate corrective actions in our production system."

Foreign object debris is a term used to describe rags, tools, metal shavings and other materials left behind by workers during the production process - and it has been a problem for other Boeing models in the past. [Sky News]

The US regulator, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), told the BBC that it was monitoring the plane maker's response to the new issue: "The FAA is aware that Boeing is conducting a voluntary inspection of undelivered aircraft for Foreign Object Debris (FOD) as part of the company's ongoing efforts to ensure manufacturing quality.

"The agency increased its surveillance based on initial inspection reports and will take further action based on the findings," it added.

Boeing said it didn't expect the issue to cause any fresh delays to the 737 Max's return to service, which the company said could happen by the middle of this year.