All Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft to be grounded in India by 4 pm: DGCA

DGCA announces to ground all Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft by 4 pm today, currently used by different airline companies in India. The decision came days after a Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft operated by the Ethiopian Airlines crashed near Addis Ababa.

New Delhi: All Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft would be grounded in India by 4 pm on Wednesday, said a senior official of Indian aviation watchdog DGCA.

• DGCA has taken the decision to ground the Boeing 737-MAX planes immediately. These planes will be grounded till appropriate modifications and safety measures are undertaken to ensure their safe operations. (1/2)

  — Ministry of Civil Aviation (@MoCA_GoI) March 12, 2019

The decision came days after a 737 MAX 8 aircraft operated by the Ethiopian Airlines crashed near Addis Ababa killing 157 people, including four Indians.

On Tuesday night, the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) announced its decision to ground the aircraft that are currently being used by airline companies in India.

"We will ground all Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft, which are currently in use by Indian airlines, by 4 pm today," the DGCA official told the news agency on Wednesday morning.

• Additionally no B737 Max aircraft will be allowed to enter or transit Indian airspace effective 1600hrs IST or 1030 UTC. The time line is to cater to situations where aircraft can be positioned at maintenance facilities & international flights can reach their destinations.(2/2)

  — Ministry of Civil Aviation (@MoCA_GoI) March 13, 2019

SpiceJet has around 12 such aircraft in its fleet. Jet Airways has five, which have been grounded already.

In a statement Wednesday, SpiceJet said that it had suspended Boeing 737 Max operations following DGCA's decision to ground the aircraft.

"Safety and security of our passengers, crew and operations are of utmost importance to us and we will be working with the regulator and the manufacturer to attain normalcy in our operations.

"We are confident of accommodating the vast majority of our passengers and minimise inconvenience," the airline said.

The Ethiopian Airlines incident on Sunday was the second such crash involving a Boeing 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.

The European Union and many other countries across the world have already banned the use of the 737 Max 8 aircraft in their respective airspace.