By Chandni Shah and Devika Madhusudhanan Nair
(Reuters) -Boeing has begun certification flight tests for its long-delayed 777-9 with U.S. aviation regulators on board, the U.S. planemaker said in an emailed statement.
The company said it operated its first flight on Friday evening after receiving a Type Inspection Authorization (TIA).
The development is a boost for Boeing (NYSE:), which has been struggling with production and legal issues since a Jan. 5 panel blowout of a 737 MAX aircraft.
The news was first reported by Air Current.
The US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) declined to comment on specific certification projects, but said: “Generally speaking, this type of thorough process takes many months.”
The 777-9 is part of the 777X project to upgrade the 777 wide-body jet. The project has been in development since 2013 but has faced multiple delays, including certification delays.
Type-examination authorization is typically associated with the start of the certification process after the FAA has examined the technical data. This milestone allows FAA pilots to participate in test flights necessary to certify the aircraft for normal operation.
The chairman of Emirates, the plane’s biggest customer, said in May that he did not expect certification before the first quarter of 2025.
Boeing has said the 777-9 test fleet will undergo the most rigorous commercial test flights the planemaker has ever undertaken.
