Airlines Pull Boeing 737 MAX Planes After Ethiopian Airlines Crash

Boeing is the American plane-making company that manufactures the Boeing 737 MAX model that was used by Ethiopian Airlines after its crash on Sunday.

Reports are saying that this is the second crash in five months involving a 737 Max 8.

The Lion Air accident that happened last year in Indonesia, was also on a 737 Max 8 plane, so reports are now making comparisons between all the plane accidents involving Boeing 737 Max models.

“Both the Ethiopian Airlines and Lion Air flights were brand-new Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes, and both crashed minutes into their flight,” CNN said in its tweet above.

They were both brand-new planes.

Even though experts argue that it is entirely too early to say what caused the Ethiopian Airlines flight to crash and kill all 157 people on board on Sunday, China and Ethiopian Airlines have now grounded all planes of the same model.

“At this stage, we cannot rule out anything,” Ethiopian Airlines CEO Tewolde Gebremariam told reporters at Bole International Airport in the capital.

The plane had crashed just six minutes after taking off.

Its pilot, Senior Captain Yared Getachew, had sensed something wrong with the plane, according to reports, and had asked to return to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital.

The pilot had a “commendable performance” record, according to the airline, with more than 8,000 hours of flight experience in the air.

Ethiopians are taking the next day, Monday, as a day of mourning for the 157 victims who died in the plane crash.

Victims included passengers from more than 30 countries.

Reports say that there 32 Kenyans, 18 Canadians, eight Americans, and seven Britons.

Among the victims were 19 people who were affiliated with the United Nations, as reported by BBC.

One passenger had missed this particular flight–he had arrived at the gate two minutes late and would not board.

The man, hailing from Greece, was supposedly due to the board but missed his flight, and then shared the image of his ticket saying:

“I was angry because nobody helped me to reach the gate on time,” he wrote in the post above in Greek. “I’m grateful to be alive.”

READ MORE: ONE “LUCKY MAN,” ANTONIS MAVROPOULOUS MISSED HIS ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES FLIGHT, SAVING HIM FROM THE CRASH

In Ethiopia, Monday has been declared as a national day of mourning.

GettyLocal residents where Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crashed.

“Following the tragic accident of ET 302 … Ethiopian Airlines has decided to ground all B-737-8 MAX fleet effective yesterday, March 10, until further notice,” the Ethiopian Airlines has said in a Twitter statement, as Boeing faces increased scrutiny over its planes.

“Although we don’t yet know the cause of the accident, we have to decide to ground the particular fleet as an extra safety precaution,” said Ethiopian Airlines–which had been known as a reliable airline in the continent of Africa.

China’s aviation authorities have ordered all airlines to ground their Boeing 737 Max 8 planes.

Cayman Airlines has also suspended operations of its two Boeing 737 Max 8 planes until investigations into the planes have been completed.

India is joining the increased announcements of reviews the Boeing jet:

“JUST IN: India’s air safety regulator says it is reviewing Boeing 737 MAX 8 safety issues after Ethiopian Airlines accident,” Reuters India tweeted above.

The Boeing 737 Max-8 was launched in 2017–airlines have only started using the model in recent times.

The 737 Max’s “engine is a bit further forward and a bit higher in relation to the wing, compared to the previous version of the plane. That affects the balance of the plane,” said an aviation analyst Gerry Soejatman, who was asked to describe how this particular Boeing model differs from other planes.

Which countries are grounding planes?

• Ethiopian Airlines
• Cayman Airways
• China
• India: India’s air safety regulator says it is reviewing Boeing 737 MAX 8 safety issues after Ethiopian Airlines accident.

Who is still flying Boeing 737 MAX 8s?

• American Airlines
• Southwest Airlines
• Norwegian Airlines
• TUI
• Silk Air
• Fiji Airways
• Icelandair
• Flydubai
• WestJet

Some are calling for American airline companies to pull the Boeing planes too.

“Two brand new Boeing 737 Max 8 airplanes crashed in 5 months,” tweeted Dr. Eugene Gu, above. “If China has grounded all 96 of its 737 Max 8s, then Southwest, American, and United Airlines should really do something to reassure the American people that its 737 Max 8 airplanes are airworthy or ground them too.”

Boeing has now postponed the debut of its new plane, following the Ethiopian Airlines incident.

https://twitter.com/TheAviationBeat/status/1104916744982929408/photo/1

“#Breaking: Boeing postpones the debut of the first 777X after the crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. #ET302 $BA,” tweeted The Aviation Beat above.

Even given these fatal crashes, Boeing’s 737 jets have been its “bestseller by far,” according to CNN’s reporting.