Boeing recently announced that the first 737 MAX landing gear exchange has been completed with American Airlines.

This milestone showcases the growth in Boeing’s Landing Gear Exchange Program, which can now provide fully overhauled main and nose landing gear assemblies certified by Boeing for 737 MAX aircraft.

During the inaugural landing gear exchange on a 737 MAX, Boeing provided a landing gear assembly and landing kit—overhauled and fully certified. The exchange involved:

• Technical overhaul
• Paperwork
• Delivery of aircraft

The success of the landing gear exchange highlights how Boeing’s end-to-end process for landing gear exchange could apply across the entire MAX fleet, with short-term preparations involving:

• Growing inventory for 737 MAX exchanges
• Adding forward-exchange slots near customers
• Tracking metrics to identify cost and downtime benefits

By offering an alternative to traditional spare parts sourcing, the Landing Gear Exchange program reduces aircraft-on-ground time (AOG time) and helps to mitigate spare parts supply constraints for operators.

The program decreases the risk of in-place overhauls and extended groundings by enabling operators to:

• Reserve forward-exchange slots instead of purchasing high-cost spare parts
• Improve fleet predictability
• Free up more working capital

Throughout the exchange process, Boeing maintains responsibility over:

• Technical overhaul
• Service bulletin incorporation
• Certification and supplier coordination

"This milestone reinforces what our customers have known for years: Boeing's Landing Gear Exchange capability delivers predictable, safe and cost‑effective outcomes," said William Ampofo, senior vice president, Parts & Distribution and Supply Chain, Boeing Global Services.

Ampofo added, "Extending the program to the 737 MAX gives operators another proven tool to shorten downtime, manage costs and align heavy maintenance with operational needs."