Boeing 777X ‘Realistically’ Will Not Win Certification Approval Before Mid-2023: FAA

A Boeing 777X airplane takes off during its first test flight from the company's plant in Everett, Wash., on Jan. 25, 2020. Terray Sylvester/Reuters

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has told Boeing Co that its planned 777X is not yet ready for a significant certification step and warned it “realistically” will not certify the airplane until mid- to late 2023.

The FAA in a May 13 letter to Boeing seen by Reuters cited a number of issues in rejecting a request by the manufacturer to issue a Type Inspection Authorization (TIA) Readiness. “The aircraft is not yet ready for TIA,” the FAA wrote, declining to approve “a phased TIA of limited scope with a small number of certification flight test plans.”