Investing.com - Boeing (NYSE: BA) traded at $185.82, down $12.25 (-6.18%) on Monday afternoon as the Federal Aviation Administration announced it will delay certification of the 737 Max 10, the largest and final variant of the Max family, while it investigates a software glitch that could increase pilot workload during landing.

FAA Administrator Bryan Bedford made the announcement at an event at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport, saying the agency has not concluded whether the issue constitutes a "safety of flight" concern and that certification will be withheld until the FAA is satisfied "we don’t have an issue here." Boeing is the most direct equity expression of this regulatory setback, with the Max 10 accounting for roughly 31% of the company’s undelivered 737 orders as of end-June, according to CBS News.

The glitch resides in Flight Management Computer software versions 14 and 14.1. When a pilot alters the programmed flight path after a missed approach, the vertical navigation (VNAV) system can disengage and revert to a simpler pitch mode, heightening crew workload at a moment — close to the airport — when it is already elevated, CBS News reported. An unnamed airline source captured the concern bluntly, telling CBS News: "How busy do you want your crew to be? Are you introducing distractions at the worst possible moment?"

Boeing initially determined in February 2025 that the issue was not a safety concern, but additional information received from operators this year prompted the company to convene a formal safety review board. Boeing notified all 737 operators in late August of the issue, according to Reuters, and said a permanent software fix is not expected until 2028, though it is working to accelerate that timeline. A Boeing spokesperson told Reuters the company has reinforced existing pilot procedures for safely handling the scenario, noting that autopilot continues to function even if VNAV disengages and that all pilots are trained to land without it.

The delay lands with particularly sharp commercial consequences. Alaska Air Group (NYSE: ALK), which has 105 Max 10s on order plus options for 35 more, the largest single order in the carrier’s history, had been counting on first delivery in spring 2027 and passenger service between April and mid-May, according to Reuters. Alaska Air COO Jason Berry told Reuters on September 24 that he expected certification by end-September, an expectation now clearly off the table. ALK shares are trading down 1.73% at $40.23 on Monday afternoon as that delivery timeline comes into question.

Beyond the Max 10, the delay also threatens to disrupt deliveries of the recently FAA-certified 737 Max 7, whose order book is almost entirely committed to Southwest Airlines. Southwest and United Airlines have both told Boeing they will not accept new Max deliveries equipped with software versions 14 or 14.1 and have requested an earlier software load instead, according to AirwaysMag. Alaska Airlines and American Airlines have also confirmed none of their in-service Max fleets carry the affected software.

The timing could not be more sensitive for Boeing’s financial recovery narrative. The company has posted per-share losses in each of its past two reported quarters. Monday’s intraday volume on BA has reached 11.7 million shares, nearly double the three-month average of roughly 5.95 million, per Investing.com data, underscoring the degree of investor alarm. The stock has now retreated sharply from its 52-week high of $254.35 and sits within approximately 5% of its 52-week low of $176.77.

The FAA said it will convene a Corrective Action Review Board and "will take immediate action if it identifies a safety concern," a spokesperson told Reuters. No timeline has been given for how long that review will take before a Max 10 certification decision can be revisited.

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