Boeing 737 MAX 8 Crafts Suspended After Crash of The Ethiopian Aircraft

The China Aviation Regulator this morning gave a direct order for the Chinese airlines to suspend the operations of their Boeing Co 737 MAX aircraft following the tragic clash on one of the plane in Ethiopia that killed 157 people. The craft that crashed was the second edition of its kind that first started operating in 2017. In October 2018, another craft 737 MAX 8 crashed 13 minutes after take-off killing 189 passengers and crew members on board.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) gave a statement and said they will give a notification as to when the airlines can resume their flights and jets, and this will be done after they have contacted Boeing and the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to ensure flight safety. “Given that two accidents both involved newly delivered Boeing 737-8 planes and happened during take-off phase, they have some degree of similarity,” the CAAC said, adding that the order was in line with its principle of zero-tolerance on safety hazards. The 737 MAX 8 is sometimes referred to as the 737-8.

Bearing in mind that the cause of the Indonesian crash is still being investigated with some preliminary reports issue in November not giving concrete results except the fact that there was a cockpit voice recorder that was recovered and that the problem might have been with maintenance and training response of Boeing anti-stall system to a recently replaced sensor.

A spokesman of Boeing withheld his comments and the U.S official told Reuters that they were uncertain what information China used to call the action they did. The official, who requested to remain anonymous told Reuters that there were no plans to follow suit given that the 737 MAX had a stellar safety record in the United States and there was a lack of information about the cause of the Ethiopian crash.

Sources from the Western industry say that China has been struggling over the years to assert its ability to independently be a safety regulator and at the same time negotiate mutual safety standard recognition wit regulators in the United States and Europe.

FlightRadar24 a flight tracking website have reported that there were no Boeing 737 MAX 8 crafts flying over China from 0043 GMT on Monday and that 15 crafts landed on Sunday evening with an exception of two that touched down on Monday morning from international destinations.

The Cayman Airways has decided to withdraw the availability of its 737 MAX 8 planes until they have more information about them. Fiji Airways also on the other hand say they have full confidence in its newly obtained 737 MAX 8 and this is after they took initiative to conduct a comprehensive and elaborate induction process. “We continue to ensure that our maintenance and training program for pilots and engineers meets the highest safety standards,” the airline said. Singapore and Indonesia Airlines  continue to fly their crafts but have said they shall put a keen eye on the situation.