Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, involved in two fatal crashes, banned from UK airspace

Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, involved in two fatal crashes, banned from UK airspace

The UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has banned all Boeing 737 MAX aircraft from UK airspace, VOA News, Euronews reports.

The CAA has issued instructions to stop any commercial passenger flights from any operator arriving, departing or flying over the United Kingdom.

This decision comes after the Boeing aircraft has been involved in its second deadly crash over the last half year, causing concerns for the world’s biggest planemaker.

On Sunday, Ethiopian Airlines flight 302 crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa, killing all 157 people on board en route to Nairobi, Kenya. This crash comes only five months after another 737 Max crashed in Indonesia.

Singapore, Australia, Malaysia and Oman have also joined the list of nations to suspend Boeing 737 MAX flights from their skies.

However, the response from specific airlines has been different.

The Irish low-cost airline Ryanair is not planning to make any changes to the delivery of its first Boeing 737 MAX aeroplane next month, the chief executive Michael O’Leary was quoted as saying on Monday.

Meanwhile, Norwegian Airlines said via a press release, that it will not operate any flights with this aircraft type until further notice.

“In response to the temporary suspension of Being 737 MAX operations by multiple aviation authorities we have taken the decision to not operate flights using this aircraft type until advised otherwise by the relevant aviation authorities,” said Norwegian’s acting Chief Operating Officer Tomas Hesthammer.

Boeing has confirmed that a technical team will be travel to the Ethiopian crash site to provide technical assistance under the direction of the Ethiopia Accident Investigation Bureau and U.S. National Transportation Safety Board.

According to Boeing, the 737 MAX is the fastest-selling aeroplane in the aviation giant’s history. The aircraft has accumulated nearly 4,700 orders from more than 100 customers worldwide.