Amid safety concerns, which local airlines have Boeing 737 MAX jets?

Two brand-new Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft have crashed in a span of just over four months, raising renewed questions on its safety.

Following the incidents, China has grounded all Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes, while an Indonesian ombudsman has called for the country to follow suit.

Why the focus on Boeing 737 MAX 8?

Yesterday morning, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 lost contact six minutes after taking off from Addis Ababa.

The four-month-old Boeing 737 MAX 8, which was en route to Nairobi, Kenya, crashed southeast of the Ethiopian capital.

All 149 passengers and eight crew members aboard the aircraft were killed.

On Oct 29 last year, the Pangkal Pinang-bound Lion Air Flight 610 crashed in the Java Sea 12 minutes after taking off from Jakarta, Indonesia.

All 181 passengers and eight crew members perished with the almost three-month-old Boeing 737 MAX 8.

Do Malaysian airliners use the Boeing 737 MAX?

The three major airlines that are majority-owned by Malaysian entities are Malaysia Airlines, AirAsia and Batik Air.

Batik Air Malaysia (Malindo Air)

Malindo Air, which has been rebranded as Batik Air Malaysia, was the first airline in the world to receive the Boeing 737 MAX 8 on May 22, 2017.

The airline is 51 percent owned by Malaysian entities and 49 percent owned by Indonesia's Lion Air.

Malindo received at least three Boeing 737 MAX 8 which bore the registration numbers 9M-LRC, 9M-LRD and 9M-LRF.

However, four months after receiving the first Boeing 737 MAX 8, Malindo Air transferred all its Boeing 737 MAX 8 units to the Lion Air Group, according to aviation portal FlightGlobal.

No reason was provided for the transfers.

Aviation database Airfleets.net confirmed that all three Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft are now operating in Indonesia under Lion Air using the new registration numbers PK-LQK, PK-LQL, PK-LQM.

Malindo, in a statement, confirmed it no longer operated any Boeing 737 MAX aircraft and will be "more diligent" about acquiring any MAX series aircraft in future.

Malaysia Airlines

Likewise, MAS does not presently have any Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets in operation.

However, MAS had placed "firm orders" for the narrow-body Boeing 737 MAX 8 in 2016, with 15 units expected to arrive in 2020.

It had also made firm orders for 10 units of the Boeing 737 MAX 10, a larger variant of the narrow-body aircraft in 2017. The aircraft are expected to arrive in 2021.

Then-prime minister Najib Abdul Razak, during a visit to the US in September 2017, also oversaw the signing of a memorandum of understanding which stated that MAS would potentially acquire eight additional wide-body Boeing 787-9 Dreamliners.

He had added that Malaysia may also consider purchasing 25 Boeing 737 MAX 10 planes.

"And there is a strong probability – not possibility but probability – that we will add 25 more 737 MAX 10s in the near future," he had said.

The MOU, specific to the wide-body purchase, lapsed in September last year. MAS is reportedly also considering purchasing aircraft from Boeing’s rival, Airbus.

However, if the "firm orders" preceding the MOU proceeds as planned, the Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes will be part of the MAS fleet beginning 2020.

Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali said today that he will ask MAS owner Khazanah Nasional Bhd to review the purchase of the MAX 8 aircraft.

MAS, in a statement, confirmed it won't have any Boeing 737 MAX as part of its fleet until 2020 and is seeking technical information on the latest incident.

AirAsia

AirAsia does not have any Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft in its fleet, and has not placed any order, as it gets its planes from Airbus.

What problems did the Boeing 737 MAX 8 face?

Boeing has delivered more than 300 units of the Boeing 737 MAX series since 2017.

However, the similar circumstances under which the recent Ethiopian Airlines and Lion Air crashes occurred has triggered renewed scrutiny over the MAX 8 model.

Both planes were brand new, faced altitude problems, and crashed shortly after takeoff.

According to the preliminary report released by Indonesian investigators on the Lion Air crash, erroneous data from the aircraft's angle of attack sensors led to the pilot battling with the automated anti-stall system for control over the plane’s direction.

Following the crash, Boeing issued a bulletin to airlines on ways to deal with incorrect sensor information that could cause the aircraft to dive.

Boeing also issued a statement in which it gave its assurance about the safety of the Boeing 737 MAX 8.

"Safety is a core value for everyone at Boeing and the safety of our airplanes, our customers’ passengers and their crews is always our top priority.

"As our customers and their passengers continue to fly the 737 MAX to hundreds of destinations around the world every day, they have our assurance that the 737 MAX is as safe as any airplane that has ever flown the skies," it said.

As for the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash, preliminary news reports suggest it faced problems with fluctuating altitudes after takeoff. 

The investigation into the crash is expected to take months. - Mkini