China ethiopia suspend use of boeing 737 max 8 aircraft after crash
You're referring to the 2019 Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash.
Yes, you're correct. After the crash of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 on March 10, 2019, which killed all 157 people on board, China and Ethiopia suspended the use of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft.
Here's a brief summary of what happened:
- On March 10, 2019, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, a Boeing 737 MAX 8, took off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, bound for Nairobi, Kenya. The plane crashed near the town of Bishoftu, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) southeast of Addis Ababa, shortly after takeoff.
- All 157 people on board, including passengers and crew, were killed in the crash.
- The crash was the second fatal incident involving a Boeing 737 MAX 8 in less than six months, following the October 2018 crash of Lion Air Flight 610, which killed 189 people.
- The Ethiopian Airlines crash led to a global grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet, with many countries, including China and Ethiopia, suspending the use of the aircraft pending an investigation into the cause of the crash.
China was one of the first countries to ground the Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet, with the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) announcing a suspension of all commercial flights of the aircraft on March 11, 2019.
Ethiopia also suspended the use of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, with the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority (ECAA) announcing a suspension of all commercial flights of the aircraft on March 12, 2019.
The grounding of the Boeing 737 MAX 8 fleet was later extended to other countries, including the United States, Canada, and the European Union, as the investigation into the cause of the crash continued.
In January 2020, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States lifted its grounding order on the Boeing 737 MAX 8, allowing the aircraft to return to service. However, many countries, including China and Ethiopia, have not yet lifted their grounding orders, citing concerns about the safety of the aircraft.