In the aftermath of the second hull loss of a brand new 737 MAX 8, the Civil Aviation Administration of China (or CAAC) has grounded the 737 MAX aircraft.
Ethiopian Airlines and Cayman Airways have also grounded their 737 MAX aircraft until further notice.
According to the statement released by the CAAC, the aircraft was grounded on the basis of similarities between the Ethiopian Airlines and Lion Air crash.
The CAAC noted that the 737 MAX 8 was a safety hazard and asked all Chinese carriers to suspend use of the aircraft until further notice. The CAAC has said it would like information from Boeing and the United States Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) about the safety of the 737 MAX 8 aircraft before the grounding of the type will be lifted.
At the time of writing, no other major aviation bodies have grounded or indicated lack of confidence in the safety of Boeing’s MAX aircraft.
China is a major market for Boeing 737 Next Generation and 737 MAX aircraft. Over 90 aircraft have been grounded as a result of this as carriers seek to minimize the impact on their operations. However, with such a large number of 737 MAX aircraft, there could be plenty of disruptions to flight schedules.
China’s three largest airlines, Air China, China Eastern, and China Southern, all fly the 737 MAX 8 in addition to Xiamen Air, Shandong Airlines, Shenzhen Airways, and Hainan Airlines. These carriers combined operate almost 1/3 of all 737 MAX aircraft in service today.
No information has been given as to when the 737 MAX will be able to fly again in China, but this grounding could last a while as investigations into both crashes continue.
No doubt, this will cause some headaches for Boeing. Boeing’s 737 MAX is a hugely successful program and plenty of airlines have placed orders. In China, Boeing sees a huge potential for growth. As such, they have even invested in a 737 plant in China and have aggressively marketed the 737 MAX to carriers in an effort to stifle rival Airbus’s A320neo sales in the country.
China is a growing aviation market and will need a vast number of new aircraft. For a while, it looked like Boeing’s 737 MAX was unbeatable and would be the preferred aircraft for many airlines. Even after the first Lion Air crash, Boeing logged an order from Jeju Air and Vietjet. In addition, Boeing doesn’t seem to be slowing down their 737 MAX production one bit.
We’ll keep you posted as updates come in about the 737 MAX aircraft and will let you know if any other aviation regulatory bodies ground the 737 MAX. If you’re scheduled to fly a 737 MAX in China in the coming days, keep an eye out for schedule changes or cancellations as airlines look at how to make the best use of their fleet and attempt to minimize schedule disruptions.
Do you think China did the right thing by grounding the 737 MAX aircraft? Let us know in the comments!
