The Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau of Ethiopia released the preliminary report on the crash Ethiopian Airlines flight 302, Boeing 737-8(MAX), ET-AVJ. The flight took off from Addis Ababa Bole Int. Airporten route for Nairobi, but the Angle of Attack sensor recorded value became erroneous. The crash resulted in 157 fatalities. The report is available here

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1. Aircraft’s airworthiness was certified;
2. The crew were capable of flying& followed Boeing’s procedures;
3. Take off appeared normal;
4. Crew followed all procedures, but was unable to control the aircraft.

The release of the actual preliminary report by Ethiopia’s Ministry of Transport is expected during Apr 4th or Apr 5th 2019.

Boeing statement
We at Boeing are sorry for the lives lost in the recent 737 MAX accidents. These tragedies continue to weigh heavily on our hearts and minds, and we extend our sympathies to the loved ones of the passengers and crew on board Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302. All of us feel the immense gravity of these events across our company and recognize the devastation of the families and friends of the loved ones who perished.

The full details of what happened in the two accidents will be issued by the government authorities in the final reports, but, with the release of the preliminary report of the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 accident investigation, it’s apparent that in both flights the Maneuvering Characteristics Augmentation System, known as MCAS, activated in response to erroneous angle of attack information.

The history of our industry shows most accidents are caused by a chain of events. This again is the case here, and we know we can break one of those chain links in these two accidents. As pilots have told us, erroneous activation of the MCAS function can add to what is already a high workload environment. It’s our responsibility to eliminate this risk. We own it and we know how to do it.

From the days immediately following the Lion Air accident, we’ve had teams of our top engineers and technical experts working tirelessly in collaboration with the Federal Aviation Administration and our customers to finalize and implement a software update that will ensure accidents like that of Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 never happen again.

We’re taking a comprehensive, disciplined approach, and taking the time, to get the software update right. We’re nearing completion and anticipate its certification and implementation on the 737 MAX fleet worldwide in the weeks ahead. We regret the impact the grounding has had on our airline customers and their passengers.

This update, along with the associated training and additional educational materials that pilots want in the wake of these accidents, will eliminate the possibility of unintended MCAS activation and prevent an MCAS-related accident from ever happening again.

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Everything that is essential to a plane’s operation should be included in pilot training. The pilot must know his tools backward and forward. What happens when that training is curtailed?

On March 19th, the US Department of Transportation announced that its inspector general will audit the 737 Max 8’s certification process. Some pilots say they know how to address problems with the 737 Max 8’s maneuvering characteristics augmentation system (MCAS) system. Pilots say the MCAS software system can (apparently) be disabled by hitting the trim switch on the control column. Difference training is required for pilots who fly the Max, but apparently (MCAS) explanations, operations, procedures related to the differences were left out of the manual. The flight manual of Boeing’s 737 Max 8 planes mentions MCAS computer system only once. If MCAS information was cut from the manual to prevent the MCAS from having to be included in 737 Max transition training, whoever cut it considered only that it would save 737 Max operators training costs, but not what it would cost in terms of human lives.

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On the flight prior the LionAir accident flight on the Boeing Max registered as PK-LQP, an off-duty fully-qualified Boeing 737-MAX 8 pilot was traveling home on flight JT-43. The plane encountered problems similar to the next flight that crashed it (i.e. the LionAir accident flight from Denpasar to Jakarta.) The crew aboard the earlier flight managed to land the aircraft at the destination. Based on the crew’s entry in the AFML, the engineer at Jakarta flushed the left Pitot Air Data Module (ADM) and static ADM to rectify the reported IAS and ALT disagree and cleaned the electrical connector plug of the elevator feel computer. The aircraft was subsequently released to carry out flight JT610.(A different crew manned the fatal flight.) The pilot was interviewed by the Kantor Komite Nasional Keselamatan Transportasi–Ministry of Transportation of the Republic of Indonesia (KNKT). The KNKT committee is responsible for investigating and reporting air transportation system accidents, serious incidents and safety deficiencies involving air transportation system operations in Indonesia.

The KNKT estimates that the release of the final report for Lion B38M in August or September 2019.

The KNKT is cooperating with Ethiopian Authorities but will make no official comment. News media reports suggest that on the earlier LionAir flight, a third pilot had occupied the observer’s seat in the cockpit of flight JT-43 and that this pilot identified the automatic trim runaway issue at hand and initiated that the trim cut out switches be used.

The preliminary report on the LionAir crash is located HERE.

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Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737-8 MAX Flight ET-302 had just taken off from Addis Ababa in Ethiopia en route to Nairobi Kenya when radar contact was lost, and the plane crashed. 149 passengers and 8 crew were lost. The impact occurred near Bishoftu, Ethiopia 17 m SSE of Addis Ababa. Ethiopian Airlines announced that no survivors were found. People from 33 different countries were aboard.
On Mar 10th 2019 Ethiopian Airlines reported that the crew reported difficulties and requested a return to Addis Ababa.

BBC Africa reported aboard were 32 Kenyan, 18 Canadian, 9 Ethiopian,8 Chinese, 8 Italian, 8 American,7 French, 7 British, 6 Egyptian, 5 Dutch, 4 UN passports, 4 Indian, 3 Russian, 2 Moroccan, 2 Israeli, 1 Belgian, 1 Ugandan, 1 Yemeni, 1 Sudanese, 1 Togolese, 1 Mozambican, 1 Norwegian

Ethiopian Airlines said:

Boeing said:

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The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Chicago, Illinois, but had to turn back after the crew noticed an unusual smell on board.

The plane landed back uneventfully. All ninety-three passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.

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Malaysia Airlines flight MH-724 made an emergency landing in Jambi, Indonesia, on February 25th.

The Boeing 737-800 plane heading from Jakarta, Indonesia, to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, was diverted due to a low fuel indication.

The plane landed safely. All one hundred and twenty passengers and seven crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 737-800 plane was flying from Dhaka, Bangladesh, when a passenger attempted to enter the cockpit at gunpoint.

The plane landed uneventfully.

All Passengers and crew members disembarked while the security forces tried to negotiate with the purported hijacker. He was later shot by the security forces when he refused to surrender and was taken to a hospital where he died.

An investigation into the incident is underway.

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The Boeing 767-300 freighter plane, operating as an Amazon Air flight, was heading from Miami, Florida, to Houston, Texas, when it went down.

There were three crew members aboard at the time. One dead body was recovered near the crash site while the other crew members remain missing.

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The Boeing 737-800 plane heading from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to Denver, Colorado, was diverted due to a suspected nose tire damage.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 747-400 plane took off for Frankfurt, Germany, but had to turn back due to an engine problem.

The plane landed safely. All three hundred and sixty-one people aboard remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 747-400 plane heading from Nuremberg, Germany, to Portsmouth, New Hampshire, was diverted due to a technical issue.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 767-300 plane took off for Shanghai, China, but had to turn back due to a lavatory maintenance problem.

The plane landed back safely. All one hundred and ninety-passengers aboard remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 767-300 plane flying from Dulles International Airport, Virginia, was on approach to Amsterdam when the crew reported a flaps problem.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 767-300 plane was accelerating to takeoff for Dulles International Airport, Virginia, when the crew rejected takeoff.

The plane slowed down safely. The crew reported a hot brakes indication and requested emergency services.

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The Boeing 767-300 plane heading from Warsaw, Poland, to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic, was diverted due to a fuel leak.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained safe.

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The Boeing 777-300 plane took off for Bangkok, Thailand, but had to turn back due to a cargo door indication.

The plane landed back safely. All three hundred and sixty-four people aboard remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 737-8 MAX plane flying from Miami, Florida, was descending toward San Juan when the crew reported a hydraulic failure.

The plane landed safely. All one hundred and forty-two passengers and six crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Jazan, Saudi Arabia, but had to turn back due to a bird strike.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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FlyEgypt flight FT-241 made an emergency landing in Cairo, Egypt, on February 5th.

The Boeing 737-800 plane heading from Alexandria, Egypt, to Kuwait City, Kuwait, was diverted after the crew noticed smell of smoke in the cockpit.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 737-800 plane was flying from San Jose, Costa Rica, when it encountered severe turbulence that injured a flight attendant.

The plane continued for a safe landing. The flight attendant was transported to a hospital.

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The Boeing 737-800 plane took off for Newark, New Jersey, but had to turn back after the crew noticed smoke in the cabin.

The plane landed back safely. All crew members and both pilots were examined by the medical teams at the airport. One crew member was taken to a hospital.

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The Boeing 737-700 plane took off for Valencia, Spain, but had to turn back after the crew reported navigation system problems.

The plane landed safely. All passengers and crew members remained unharmed.

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The Boeing 737-700 plane took off for Tampa, Florida, but had to turn back due to an issue with the cabin pressure.

The plane landed back safely.

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