What the Ethiopian Airlines tragedy means for confidence in the Boeing 737 Max 8

157 passengers and crew lost their lives when an Ethiopian Airlines flight operating a Boeing 737 Max 8 crashed near Addis Ababba, en route to Nairobi, last Sunday. It is a terrible tragedy for their families, Ethiopia, Africa, the world and the aviation industry.

Mustafa Alrawi, The National’s Assistant Editor in Chief, and aviation correspondent Deena Kamel discuss the potential impact of the crash on confidence in Boeing’s 737 Max 8 aircraft and the wider air travel industry. 

There has been an understandable reaction in the wake of the Ethiopian Airlines disaster. Demand for answers is growing as the investigation continues into how the 737 Max 8 aircraft crashed only minutes into the flight.

As a precautionary safety measure for passengers, crew and the public at large the UAE, the UK, South Korea, Australia and China and others have grounded their 737 Max fleets and prohibited the aircraft from flying in their airspace.

The concerns are that this tragedy is not an isolated one. An Indonesian Lion Air flight also operating the 737 Max 8 aircraft crashed in October, killing all 189 people aboard. 

Mustafa Alrawi, The National’s Assistant Editor in Chief, and aviation correspondent Deena Kamel discuss the potential impact of the crash on confidence in Boeing’s 737 Max 8 aircraft and the wider air travel industry.