Boeing 737 MAX: FAA doubles down on decision not to ground plane involved in Ethiopia crash

Donald Trump has spoken to the company's CEO

The US’s aviation agency has doubled down on its decision not to ground the Boeing 737 MAX, leaving America and Canada the only major nations still flying the aircraft model involved in two crashes that killed more than 300 people.

As officials around the world – among them the European Union’s aviation safety regulators – said they were suspending flights involving the 737 MAX, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it had seen no reason to follow suit.

Acting FAA Administrator Dan Elwell said its review showed “no systemic performance issues and provides no basis to order grounding the aircraft”.

He added that no foreign civil aviation authorities had “provided data to us that would warrant action”.

“In the course of our urgent review of data on the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash, if any issues affecting the continued airworthiness of the aircraft are identified, the FAA will take immediate and appropriate action,” said Mr Elwell.

His comments, following Sunday’s crash of an Ethiopian Airlines flight that killed around 160 people, came as regulators around the globe moved to ground the Boeing 737 MAX.

The CEO of Ethiopian Airlines, Tewolde GebreMariam, told CNN the doomed plane’s pilot had “flight control problems” shortly before the fatal crash.

“He was having difficulties with the flight control of the air plane, so he asked to return back to base,” said Mr GebreMariam. He said the pilot was granted permission to return to ground; as he did so, the flight disappeared from the radar of air traffic control.

The aircraft is made by Boeing Commercial Airplanes in Seattle. Boeing, which is headquartered in Chicago, has insisted there is no need for the jet to be grounded.

“Safety is Boeing’s number one priority and we have full confidence in the safety of the MAX,” the company said in a statement.

“We understand that regulatory agencies and customers have made decisions that they believe are most appropriate for their home markets. It is also important to note that the Federal Aviation Administration is not mandating any further action at this time, and based on the information currently available, we do not have any basis to issue new guidance to operators.”

The decision by the FAA and authorities in Canada, mean they are the only two major nations still flying the jet, which was also the model involved in a Lion Air flight crash in Indonesia last October. Around 190 people were killed.

In the US, the airlines using the model Southwest, United and American, have stood by it, though some have sought to offer customers alternative flights. Air Canada is also still operating the aircraft.

The CEO of Boeing, Dennis Muilenburg, spoke to Donald Trump after the president tweeted that “airplanes are becoming far too complex to fly”.

“Pilots are no longer needed, but rather computer scientists from MIT,” he added. “I see it all the time in many products. Always seeking to go one unnecessary step further, when often old and simpler is far better.”

Boeing shares were down more than 6 per cent on Tuesday, having fallen by five per cent on Monday.