Boeing boosts 737 Max safety with spacecraft, drone technology

Boeing Co 737 Max airplanes parked at Boeing Field in Seattle, Washington, United States on July 27. — Bloomberg

Boeing Co is preparing to bolster the long-term safety of its troubled 737 Max with technology borrowed from space vehicles and urban drones that can provide data to help back up its sensors.

The system – known as synthetic air data – takes existing information on the aircraft, runs it through a computer program and produces readings that mimic what costly additional sensors provide.