China grounds Max 8 planes after crash
Civil aviation authorities told domestic airlines on Monday to ground nearly 100 Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, more than a quarter of the total in operation worldwide, after one of the planes operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed on Sunday.
All 157 people on board the aircraft from Addis Ababa to Nairobi died, including eight Chinese nationals, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday. The tragedy follows the crash of a Lion Air Max 8 plane that went down over the Java Sea in October, killing 189 people.
“Considering the two accidents took place when newly delivered Boeing 737 Max 8s went down just minutes after taking off, they have some degree of similarity,” the Civil Aviation Administration of China said in a statement on Monday.
Based on its management principle of zero-tolerance for safety hazards, the administration grounded all Chinese Boeing 737 Max 8 jets as of 6 pm Monday. The statement said it would issue further notices after consulting with the US Federal Aviation Administration and Boeing.
There are 96 737 Max 8 jets in service with domestic airlines, including Air China, China Eastern Airlines, China Southern Airlines and Hainan Airlines, the StateOwned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission said.
After the notice was issued, at least 29 flights were canceled on Monday, and 256 others that were to use the Max 8 jets were switched to other aircraft, according to data provider VariFlight.
Li Jian, deputy head of the administration, told Chinese media on Monday that two accidents occurred with the same aircraft model within 130 days, putting great pressure on the civil aviation authorities. “We are faced with uncertainty of whether the pilots dare to fly them and whether they can fly,” he said.
Other countries’ airlines have also grounded the Max 8, including Ethiopian Airlines and Caribbean carrier Cayman Airways.
In a statement on Sunday, Boeing said a technical team would be traveling to the crash site to provide technical assistance.
Li Xiaojin, a professor of aviation economics at Civil Aviation University in Tianjin, said it’s reasonable and justified for regulators to ground the jets. “The total of 96 Boeing 737 Max 8s only accounts for less than 3 percent of the domestic fleet. Airlines can use other aircraft, so it will not have too much effect on passenger travel.”
The Max is the newest, more fuel efficient version of the 737, the best-selling airliner in history.
To guard against potential risks, China’s civilian aviation authority ordered all Chinese airlines to indefinitely ground their Boeing 737 Max 8 planes on Monday. The decision, made after one of the aircraft operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed on Sunday killing all on board, is a necessary and reasonable move as China’s airlines operate 90 of the aircraft.
Sunday’s disaster happened shortly after the plane took off from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital. The aircraft was new and the weather was clear at the time but the pilots reportedly tried to return to the airport before the plane went into a fatal nose-dive killing all 157 passengers and crew on board. Eight Chinese nationals, including one from Hong Kong, were among the victims.
We extend our condolences to the families of the deceased. Considering that the newest version of Boeing’s 737 airliner was involved in a previous deadly crash in Indonesia just five months ago, it is natural that questions are being asked worldwide about the plane. It is essential that the cause of the crash be identified as soon as possible so that similar tragedies can be avoided.
“Given that two accidents both involved newly delivered Boeing 737-8 planes and happened during the takeoff phase, they have some degree of similarity”, the Civil Aviation Administration of China said in a statement, which made clear that grounding the aircraft was in line with its principle of zero tolerance to security risks.
Boeing’s 737 is the best-selling airliner in history, and there are already more than 5,000 orders for the Max, the newest, more fuelefficient version of the plane. The US company needs to address global concerns in a timely fashion. As one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of commercial aircraft, with questions being asked about the automated system that activates if sensors indicate that a plane is about to lose lift or go into an aerodynamic stall, Boeing has a responsibility to ensure that its products do not have any design flaws.
Although we need to be patient and wait for the first results of the investigation to get some indication of what happened, the CAAC’s action is not a case of jumping to conclusions based on very few facts. It is right to exercise caution and consult with the US company to ensure the safety of the planes as nothing is more important than human life.