Boeing grounds entire global fleet of 737 Max aircraft
TravelBizNews —
US plane manufacturer Boeing has grounded its entire global fleet of 737 Max aircraft after investigators uncovered new evidence at the scene of the fatal Ethiopian Airlines crash.
Earlier, the Federal Aviation Administration said fresh evidence as well as newly refined satellite data prompted the decision to temporarily ban the jets.
The US and Brazil became the latest countries to suspend the Boeing 737 Max from flying after nations including the UK,Germany, France,Singapore, China, India , Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia all grounded the aircraft. All 157 passengers and crew died in Sunday’s crash.
The Ethiopian Airlines tragedy marks the second fatal crash within five months involving Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft.
In October last year a Lion Air Boeing 737 Max crashed shortly after take-off from Jakarta, Indonesia, killing all 189 people on board.
The 737 Max has been the fastest-selling aircraft in Boeing’s history, with more than 4,500 ordered by 100 different operators globally. The 737 Max 8 aircraft has only been in commercial use since 2017.
Boeing’s statement
“Boeing continues to have full confidence in the safety of the 737 MAX. However, after consultation with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), and aviation authorities and its customers around the world, Boeing has determined — out of an abundance of caution and in order to reassure the flying public of the aircraft’s safety — to recommend to the FAA the temporary suspension of operations of the entire global fleet of 371 737 MAX aircraft. “
“On behalf of the entire Boeing team, we extend our deepest sympathies to the families and loved ones of those who have lost their lives in these two tragic accidents,” said Dennis Muilenburg, president, CEO, Chairman of The Boeing Company.
“We are supporting this proactive step out of an abundance of caution. Safety is a core value at Boeing for as long as we have been building airplanes; and it always will be. There is no greater priority for our company and our industry. We are doing everything we can to understand the cause of the accidents in partnership with the investigators, deploy safety enhancements and help ensure this does not happen again,” Boeing said in a press release.
March 14, 2019
