WAITING FOR PASSENGERS, AMERICAN PUTS BOEING MAX IN THE AIR

American Airlines is taking its long-grounded Boeing 737 Max jets out of storage, updating key flight-control software, and flying the planes in preparation for the first flights with paying passengers later this month.

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The airline invited press reporters and photographers on board one of the planes Wednesday to demonstrate its confidence in the plane’s safety.

All Max jets worldwide were grounded in March 2019 after the second of two crashes that together killed 346 people. Last month, the Federal Aviation Administration approved changes — mainly in flight-control software — that will allow airlines to resume flying the plane.

American flew journalists from Dallas to the airline’s maintenance center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, where crews explained how they are bringing the planes out of storage and making FAArequired changes.

American is likely to be the first carrier to put passengers on Max jets, beginning Dec. 29 with once-a-day round trips between New York and Miami. In the meantime, the airline plans flights with employees on board.

Some relatives of people who died in the crashes — and who still believe the plane is unsafe — expressed outrage at both Boeing and American over what they termed a publicity stunt.

Zipporah Kuria, a British citizen whose father died in the second Max crash, said Boeing and the FAA should instead turn over documents on changes made to fix the plane and how they were tested. The company has withheld the documents, saying they cover trade secrets.