Worried about flying in a Boeing 737 Max 8? These are the airlines that use it

A Southwest Boeing 737 Max 8. This new Boeing model is growing in popularity among airlines. PHOTO: AFP

Updated

Published

Mar 12, 2019, 08:52 AM

NEW YORK (NYTIMES) - The plane that crashed on Sunday (March 10) outside Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, revived questions about a new Boeing model that is growing in popularity among airlines.

The crash was the second in just five months involving the model, a Boeing 737 Max 8.

Concerns first surfaced after a Lion Air flight crashed near Indonesia in October, killing all 189 people aboard.

The 737 class is a workhorse for airlines worldwide, and the single-aisle 737 Max has been Boeing's best-selling plane ever. More than 350 of the Max 8 planes are currently registered, and many more are on order.

Max 8 planes flew more than 8,500 flights worldwide in the week beginning Feb 25, according to Flightradar24, a flight tracking service.

Two American carriers that use the planes heavily - Southwest Airlines and American Airlines - have said they will continue to fly them.

But on Monday, China and Indonesia ordered their airlines to ground all of the Max 8 jets they operate. Some other carriers, including Cayman Airways and Comair, followed suit.

Investigators have not yet determined the cause of the Ethiopia crash, but they recovered both the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder on Monday.

Some circumstances of the crash, such as unusual altitude changes after takeoff, were similar to those in the Lion Air flight.

Five months later, the causes of the Indonesian crash are still under investigation. But the tragedy revealed that Boeing and the US Federal Aviation Administration determined that pilots did not need to be informed of changes to the Max 8's flight control system, which may have contributed to the crash.

STATUS OF BOEING 737 MAX 8 FLIGHTS BY AIRLINE

- SOUTHWEST AIRLINES

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 34.

- AIR CANADA

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 24

- AMERICAN AIRLINES

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 24

- CHINA SOUTHERN AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 22

- NORWEGIAN AIR

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 18

- AIR CHINA

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 15

- TUI FLY

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 15

- SPICEJET

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 13

- WESTJET

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 13

- HAINAN AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 11

- SHANGHAI AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 11

- FLYDUBAI

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 11

- TURKISH AIRLINES

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 11

- XIAMEN AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 10

- LION AIR

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 10

- JET AIRWAYS

Status: Unknown

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 9

- SMARTWINGS

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 7

- SHANDONG AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 7

- GOL AIRLINES

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 7

- SHENZHEN AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 6

- SILKAIR

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 6

- AEROMEXICO

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 6

- AEROLINEAS ARGENTINAS

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 5

- LOT

Status: Unknown

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 5

- OMAN AIR

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 5

- ETHIOPIAN AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 4

- CHINA EASTERN AIRLINES

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 4

- SUNWING AIRLINES

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 4

- LUCKY AIR

Status: Grounded

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 3

- AIR ITALY

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 3

- ICELANDAIR

Status: In use

Number of 737 Max 8s in fleet: 3