Dagmawit Moges, Ethiopia’s minister of transportation, says the crew of the Ethiopian Airlines jet that crashed in March followed procedures recommended by Boeing but were unable to regain control of the aircraft.
Moges disclosed this on Thursday, unveiling the results of the preliminary investigation into the crash, which killed all 157 passengers, including two Nigerians, and crew members on board.
The Kenya-bound jet crashed on March 10 minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital.
It was the second crash of a Boeing 737 MAX 8 within five months, following a Lion Air crash in Indonesia in October 2018.
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Morges said the report recommends “the aircraft flight control system shall be reviewed by the manufacturer.
“The crew performed all the procedures repeatedly provided by the manufacturer but was not able to control the aircraft,” Moges said, citing data from the Boeing 737 MAX 8’s recorders.
“Aviation authorities shall verify that the review of the aircraft flight control system has been adequately addressed by the manufacturer before the release of the aircraft for operations”.
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In a statement, Tewolde GebreMariam, the airline CEO, said the company is still going through “deep mourning for the loss of our loved ones”.
“We would like to express our deep sympathy and condolences for the families, relatives and friends of the victims,” the statement read.
“We are very proud of our pilot’s compliance with the emergency procedures and high level of professional performances in such extremely difficult situations. We are also very proud of our Global standard Pilot Training Center and the Ethiopian Aviation Academy which is one of the largest and most modem in the world equipped with state of the art and latest training technologies.”
Following the crash, Boeing’s 737 Max 8 jets were grounded worldwide pending investigations into the cause of mishaps.
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