DGCA advisory to airlines on potential rudder system issue in Boeing 737 planes

Aviation regulator DGCA on Monday has issued interim safety recommendations to all Indian operators of Boeing 737 aircraft, effective immediately.

The move follows the recent US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) Aviation Investigation Report, which highlights safety concerns involving Boeing 737 airplanes equipped with Collins Aerospace SVO-730 Rudder Rollout Guidance Actuators.

The recommendations include informing all flight crews through a circular/advisory regarding the possibility of a jammed or restricted Rudder control system and mitigations that may be taken resort to by the crews to identify and handle such a situation.

All operators must conduct a safety risk assessment for aircraft to evaluate and mitigate the risk associated with the Rudder control system.

All Category III B approach, landing, and rollout operations, including practice or actual autoland, must be discontinued for airplanes until further notice.

Discussion about potential Rudder control system issues must be included as a mandatory topic in recurrent training sessions and Instrument Rating/Proficiency Checks (IR/PPC) during pre-simulator briefings.

“Operators have been instructed to include specific exercises in Recurrent Training and IR/PPC that simulate scenarios involving a jammed or restricted rudder control system, including rollout procedures.

“Appropriate flight crew responses and mitigations should be practiced during these exercises,” the regulator said in a release.

The interim measures aim to enhance safety and ensure that flight crews are well-prepared to handle potential rudder control issues effectively.