Ethiopian Airlines has returned its B737 MAX back to the skies today.
Tuesday’s demonstration flight had journalists, diplomats and officials on board. It was initially scheduled to reach neighbouring Kenya but remained within Ethiopia due to poor weather.
It was the first time the aircraft flew after a deadly crash in March 2019, which killed 157 passengers and crew members.
The accidents exposed a problem with a system on the plane, and the model was grounded worldwide,
Ethiopian Group CEO Tewolde GebreMariam said, “Safety is the topmost priority at Ethiopian Airlines and it guides every decision we make and all actions we take. It is in line with this guiding principle that we are now
returning the B737 MAX to service not only after the recertification by the FAA (Federal Aviation
Administration), EASA of Europe, Transport Canada, CAAC, ECAA and other regulatory bodies
but also after the fleet type’s return to service by 36 airlines around the world.”
“We have taken enough time to monitor the design modification work and the more than 20 months of
rigorous recertification process and we have ensured that our pilots, engineers, aircraft technicians
and cabin crew are confident in the safety of the fleet. “
Ethiopian Airlines has four B737 MAX in its fleet and 25 on order, some of which it will
take delivery of in 2022.
