US FAA says first 40 inspections of Boeing 737 MAX 9 planes complete

WASHINGTON -- The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said on Wednesday that inspections of an initial group of 40 Boeing 737 MAX 9 jets had been completed, a key hurdle to eventually ungrounding the model after a mid-air cabin panel blowout on Jan. 5. The FAA said on Wednesday it would "thoroughly review the data" and was convening a Corrective Action Review Board before deciding if the planes could resume flights. Alaska Airlines and United Airlines, the two U.S. carriers that use the aircraft and completed the inspections, have had to cancel thousands of flights this month. Calhoun and Shanahan also toured the Wichita production plant, a Spirit spokesperson said. Boeing on Tuesday named retired U.S. Navy Admiral Kirkland H. Donald to advise the planemaker's CEO on improving quality control.