An investigation led by Indonesia found that design and oversight lapses were key factors to blame in the October 2018 crash of a Boeing Co. 737 MAX operated by Lion Air that killed 189 people on board, The Wall Street Journal reported Sept. 22, citing people familiar with the matter.
The draft conclusions also identified pilot errors and maintenance mistakes as factors that led to the crash. The report, which is expected to be the first formal government finding on the incident, is subject to change and further analysis is likely to be released in early November, the Journal said.
In April, Boeing CEO Dennis Muilenburg acknowledged that a fault in the flight control system of the 737 MAX aircraft contributed to the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines plane crashes. The latter took place in March, prompting regulators from across the world to ground 737 MAX jets.
U.S. investigators are readying the release of separate safety recommendations, including improving pilots' manual flying skills and enhancing the Federal Aviation Administration's process of approving aircraft designs, the Journal said.
Recommendations from the U.S. and Indonesia are not binding on the FAA, the publication added.
Separately, Icelandair Group hf. said Sept. 20 that it reached an interim agreement with Boeing to receive compensation for the suspension of its 737 MAX planes.
In a statement, the company said the compensation "covers a fraction" of its total loss due to the global grounding of the said aircraft. It did not disclose the exact settlement amount.
Icelandair previously estimated that the impact of the suspension on its EBIT was $140 million as of Aug. 1. That amount has increased since then as the grounding remains in place, the company added.
Taking into account Boeing's compensation, the estimated impact of the suspension on Icelandair's EBIT quantified to date is about $135 million.
Boeing took a $5.6 billion revenue hit in the second quarter as a result of the 737 MAX woes.
