The Macau Civil Aviation Authority (AACM) Wednesday banned all flight applications for Boeing 737 MAX jets.
According to an AACM statement, the regulator has decided to temporarily suspend flight applications for Boeing 737 MAX 8 and MAX 9 aircraft by any airline, adding that it “will continue to closely monitor the B737 MAX safety concerns”.
The statement pointed out that the current fleet of locally registered aircraft does not include the ill-fated Boeing 737 MAX jet, apart from the fact that no airline operates B737 MAX aircraft at the local airport.
Consequently, the suspension does not affect the local airport’s flight operations, the statement said.
According to the statement, the regulator will lift the suspension only when all B737 MAX 8 and 9 safety concerns have been cleared.
The suspension was ordered following the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines’ B737 MAX 8 passenger jet on Sunday, killing all 157 people on board shortly after take-off from Addis Ababa.
It was the second deadly crash of a B737 MAX 8 jet in less than five months. The first crash happened in October last year when an aircraft of the same model operated by Indonesia’s Lion Air plunged into the sea off western Indonesia minutes after taking off, killing 189 people on board.(Macaunews)
