Relatively new Boeing 737 under scanner after second air crash in five months

Following the crash of the Ethiopian Airlines plane, several airlines have grounded the aircraft. In India, DGCA has initiated talks with both Boeing and airlines flying Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft

Photo Courtesy: PTI
Photo Courtesy: PTI
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NH Web Desk

The Indian government said that it will discuss with aviation regulator DGCA on action that needs to be taken regarding Boeing 737 MAX planes being operated in India following the crash, a senior official said Monday.

Against the backdrop of full-service carrier Jet Airways and budget airline SpiceJet operating 737 MAX planes, the DGCA has decided to seek information about the aircraft from Boeing as well as the two domestic carriers.

A senior civil aviation ministry official on Monday said it would discuss with the DGCA on the action that needs to be taken with regard to 737 MAX aircraft.

Jet Airways has placed orders for 225 737 MAX planes with Boeing and some have already been delivered.

SpiceJet, which has embarked on ambitious expansion plans, has a deal with Boeing for up to 205 aircraft, including at least 155 737 MAX 8 planes.

The two airlines did not offer any immediate comments regarding the MAX planes.

Currently, SpiceJet has 13 737 MAX 8 planes and Jet Airways has 8 such aircraft in their fleets, as per data available with planespotters.net website.

In the wake of the incident, various jurisdictions and airlines have initiated actions, including grounding of the 737 MAX aircraft. The Civil Aviation Administration of China has asked its local carriers to stop commercial flights with 737 MAX 8 planes and Ethiopian Airlines has grounded its fleet of such aircraft.

Last December, the DGCA asked Jet Airways and SpiceJet to immediately report any "abnormal" issues related to the MAX plane's Manoeuvring Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), following the Lion Air crash.

MCAS is a kind of stall-recovery system that is used in Boeing 737 MAX aircraft and generally alerts the pilot in case there is stalling of the plane or fall in speed, among others.

Prior to that, the DGCA, in November 2018, asked the two carriers to take corrective action to address possible issues with their 737 MAX planes that could lead to "significant altitude loss" of the aircraft.

"A Boeing technical team will be travelling to the crash site to provide technical assistance under the direction of the Ethiopia Accident Investigation Bureau and US National Transportation Safety Board," the aircraft maker said in a statement.

Some other foreign airlines have also decided to ground the aircraft till further investigation is done. Cayman Airways stated that there were putting “the safety of passengers and crew first”.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation will be examining the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft following the Ethiopian Airlines aircraft crash on Sunday. It is likely to hold meetings with Boeing and Indian airlines such as Jet Airways and SpiceJet, both of which are known to operate the latest variant of the Boeing aircraft.

The Indonesian authorities have also decided to ground all Boeing 737 aircrafts and stated they will conduct a forensic investigation according to The Guardian.


Photo Courtesy: PTI
Photo Courtesy: PTI
Workers gather at the scene of an Ethiopian Airlines flight crash

An Ethiopian Airlines jet crashed on Sunday shortly after it took-off from Addis Ababa, killing all 157 people on board.

The airline said 149 passengers and eight crew members were on flight ET302 from the Ethiopian capital to Nairobi in Kenya, the BBC reported.

The crash happened at 8:44am, six minutes after the months-old Boeing 737 Max-8 took off. It is not yet clear what caused the accident. The pilot had reported difficulties and had asked to return to Addis Ababa, the airline said.

This is for the second time in less than five months that a Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane crashed. A Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight went down over the Java Sea in late October, killing all 189 people on board.

Some facts about the Boeing 737 Max aircraft:

  • The 737 generation was launched on August 30, 2011 and it performed its first flight on January 29, 2016.
  • The new series gained FAA certification on March 8, 2017. The first delivery was a MAX 8 on May 6, 2017 to which placed the aircraft into service on May 22, 2017.
  • The 737 MAX is based on earlier 737 designs. It is re-engined with more efficient CFM International LEAP-1B power plants, aerodynamic improvements (including distinctive split-tip winglets), and airframe modifications.
  • The 737 MAX series is offered in four variants, typically offering 138 to 230 seats and a 3,215 to 3,825 nmi (5,954 to 7,084 km) range.
  • Additional length is offered with the further stretched 737 MAX 10. As of January 2019, the Boeing 737 MAX has received 5,011 firm orders and delivered 350.
  • The 737 MAX is the fastest selling airplane in Boeing's history.
  • "The 737 MAX is the fastest selling airplane in Boeing history, accumulating nearly 4,700 orders from more than 100 customers, worldwide," according to Boeing website.

(with inputs from agencies and The Guardian)

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