Ethiopian to Resume Flying B737 MAX Early Next Month

Ethiopian Airlines announced that it will start flying Boeing 737 MAX fleet in the first week of February.

“Following months of rigorous monitoring and painstaking preparation, we are pleased to inform you that we set to return the B737 MAX back to the skies in the first week of February,” the airline stated in a press release it sent to ENA.

It is to be recalled that Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 Max-8 crashed shortly after take-off from Bole International Airport, killing all 157 people on board. Since then, Ethiopian Airlines suspended flying the B737 MAX which proved faulty during investigations that followed.

According to the airline, the B737 MAX has undergone design modification work and rigorous recertification process which lasted for over 20 months.

“As a safety-first airline, we had promised that we would be among the last carriers to return this aircraft breed to the skies. So far, 36 airlines have returned the B737 MAX to commercial service, with over 329,911 revenue flights and more than 820,040 total flight hours,” the release stated.

Ethiopian affirmed that throughout the recertification process, it has been closely monitoring the design modification work and the entire process, and made sure that its pilots, engineers, aircraft technicians and cabin crew were confident about the safety of the fleet type.

The American Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC), Transport Canada, the Ethiopian Civil Aviation Authority (ECAA), and other authorities have re-certified the fleet type for commercial service, it was learned.

Source: Ethiopia News Agency