Boeing’s largest 737 Max model jets off on maiden flight

Boeing’s 737 Max 10, the largest member of its best-selling single-aisle airplane family, took off on its maiden flight on Friday from a Seattle-area airport, according to a Reuters witness.

The plane departed at 10:07 a.m. PDT from the Renton Municipal airport near Seattle, presaging months of testing and safety certification work before it is expected to enter service in 2023.  In an unusual departure from the PR buzz surrounding first flights, the event was being kept deliberately low-key as Boeing tries to navigate overlapping crises caused by the 20-month grounding in the wake of two crashes and the COVID-19 pandemic.