New Delhi: The use of Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft by the country's airline companies was banned on Tuesday by airline watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA).
On Sunday, a 737 MAX 8 aircraft operated by Ethiopian Airlines crashed near Addis Ababa killing 157 people, including four Indians.
“These planes will be grounded till appropriate modifications & safety measures are undertaken to ensure their safe operations. We continue to consult closely with regulators around the world, airlines, and aircraft manufacturers to ensure passenger safety,” said DGCA.
The decision comes after a number of countries — including Singapore, Indonesia, UK, France, Germany among others — decided to ground the Boeing 737 Max 8 planes.
SpiceJet has around 12 such aircraft in its fleet, while Jet Airways has five, which are currently grounded.
The incident on Sunday was second such crash involving the 737 MAX 8 aircraft in less than five months. In October last year, an aircraft operated by Lion Air crashed killing over 180 people in Indonesia.
In a tweet on Monday, civil aviation minister Suresh Prabhu had said that he directed the DGCA to undertake safety assessment of Boeing 737-MAX planes being flown by domestic carriers.
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