Drew Angerer/Getty Images
- The United States grounded all Boeing 737 Max 8 planes on Wednesday following two deadly crashes involving the aircraft in the past five months.
- President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he is issuing an order to ground all 737 Max aircraft effective immediately.
- Canada, Europe, and nearly fifty other countries also grounded the jet this week following the Ethiopian Airlines disaster on Sunday.
The United States on Wednesday joined Canada, Europe, and nearly fifty other countries in banning the Boeing 737 max 8 aircraft from its airspace following Sunday’s Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed 157 people.
President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he is issuing an order to ground all 737 Max aircraft effective immediately.
"We’re going to be ordering an emergency order to ground all 737 Max 8 and the 737 Max 9 and planes associated with that line," the President said. " Any plane currently in the air will go to its destination and thereafter be grounded until further notice."
The 737 MAX’s major US customers include Southwest, American, and United. Southwest Airlines is the plane’s largest customer with 34 planes in its fleet. American operates 24 737 Max 8 aircraft while United flies 14 of the larger 737 Max 9 variant.
The move to ban the plane follows calls by a number of US lawmakers to ground the plane on Tuesday.
On Tuesday, Boeing announced that it will roll out an updated version of the 737 Max’s control software in the coming weeks.
On Sunday, Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET302 crash shortly after taking off from Addis Ababa Bole International Airport. The crashed killed all 157 passengers and crew on board the four-month-old plane.
It’s the second nearly brand new Boeing 737 MAX 8 airliner in recent months to be involved in a fatal crash. In October, Lion Air Flight JT610 crashed in the Java Sea shortly after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia, killing all 189 people on board.
More on Boeing’s 737 Max 8 and the Ethiopian Airlines disaster:
- Everything we know about Ethiopian Airlines’ deadly crash of a Boeing 737 Max 8, the second disaster involving the plane in 5 months
- Norwegian Air reportedly tells Boeing to ‘take this bill’ after grounding its fleet of 18 Boeing 737 Max planes
- This map shows all the countries to ban the Boeing 737 Max 8, and where airlines have grounded their fleets, after Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed 157
- Elected officials are calling on the US government to ground the Boeing 737 Max 8 after the plane was involved in 2 deadly crashes
- Boeing’s CEO reportedly asked President Trump not to ground the company’s plane that has crashed twice in 5 months
- Pilots complained to authorities about issues with the Boeing 737 Max for months before the deadly Ethiopian Airlines crash
- The US government says it has no reason to ground the Boeing 737 MAX that has crashed twice since October
- These airlines will likely take the biggest hit after the Boeing 737 Max was involved in two deadly crashes
- The Boeing 737 Max has come under fire after 2 deadly crashes in 5 months — but the aircraft is likely to be successful in the long-run, an aviation expert explains
- These airlines will likely take the biggest hit after the Boeing 737 Max was involved in two deadly crashes
- ‘You basically put a student pilot in there’: The copilot of crashed Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 had just 200 hours of flight experience
- Boeing is going to update the control software on the 737 Max that may cause the plane to nosedive
- Boeing has $400 billion in orders on the books, 80% of them are for the 737
- ‘I don’t want Albert Einstein to be my pilot’: Trump says airplanes are becoming ‘too complex to fly’ as the UK, China, and other nations ground the Boeing 737 Max 8
- These are the victims of the Boeing 737 Max 8 crash in Ethiopia
- The family of Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 captain speaks out after crash that killed 157 people
- A Georgetown University law student who reportedly expressed a fear of flying is among the 157 dead in the Ethiopian Airlines crash
- The black box from the crashed Ethiopian Airlines flight has been found
- An Ethiopian Airlines passenger said he missed the crashed flight by 2 minutes: ‘I’m grateful to be alive’
- People of 35 different nationalities were killed in the Ethiopian Airlines crash, including 8 Americans
NOW WATCH: This Mercedes-Benz stretch van feels like a private jet
See Also:
- Boeing’s software update to the 737 Max 8 was reportedly delayed more than a month because of the government shutdown
- Everything we know about Ethiopian Airlines’ deadly crash of a Boeing 737 Max 8, the second disaster involving the plane in 5 months
- Elected officials are calling on the US government to ground the Boeing 737 Max 8 after the plane was involved in 2 deadly crashes
Source: Business Insider – grapier@businessinsider.com (Graham Rapier)