Boeing 737 Max planes banned from Irish airspace after Ethiopian crash

Passenger flights using Boeing’s 737 Max plane have been banned from operating in Ireland amid safety concerns following the Ethiopian Airlines disaster.

Sunday morning’s crash shortly after taking off from Addis Ababa killed 157 people.

The one Irish victim was named as Michael Ryan, a married father-of-two based in Rome with the UN’s World Food Programme, which distributes rations to people in need.

The Irish Aviation Authority (IAA) said it had decided to temporarily suspend the operation of all variants of the Boeing 737 MAX aircraft into and out of Irish airspace, following two fatal accidents involving the aircraft in recent months.

It said: “The IAA’s decision has been made taking account of the unprecedented loss of two Boeing 737 MAX in recent months.”

Black box recorders for the flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi in Kenya have been recovered.

The IAA added: “The IAA has been closely monitoring the situation, however, as we do not currently have sufficient information from the flight data recorder we have, as a precautionary measure, issued instructions to stop any flights on Boeing 737 MAX from any operator arriving, departing or overflying Irish airspace.”

During the temporary suspension, the IAA said it would continue to work closely with the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA), the US Federal Aviation Authority (FAA) and aircraft manufacturer Boeing.

A number of countries and airlines around the world have also grounded 737 Max 8 aircraft, which was the model involved when Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 crashed.