All the 157 people on board an Ethiopian Airlines flight Boeing 737 MAX 8 that crashed soon after taking off from Addis Ababa have been killed.
The plane ET 302 bound for Nairobi, Kenya lost contact 6 minutes after taking off at 08.44 am local time from Bole International Airport in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. The aircraft crashed at Bishoftu, south east off capital Addis Ababa. The aircraft had passengers and crew members from 32 nationalities.
Ethiopian Airlines spokesperson said 32 Kenyans, 18 Canadians, nine Ethiopians, eight Americans, eight Italians, seven UK nationals, eight Chinese citizens were among the passengers.
The Spokesperson added that the Canadian-European pilot had flown more than 8,000 hours and had captained a 737 since November 2017. Officials are still to determine as to why the brand new plane, which had flown for only 1,400 hours crashed.
A passenger information center and hotline "will be available shortly for family or friends of those who may have been on flight," said the airline. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed expressed deepest condolences when the news broke out.
Ethiopian Airlines has gained the reputation of being one of the best airlines in Africa. It has a good safety record and the newest fleet of planes on the African continent.
The Boeing 737 MAX 8 is the same type of plane as the Indonesian Lion Air jet that crashed soon after takeoff from Jakarta in 2018 killing 189 people. However there is a significant difference between the two crashes. The Lion Air Flight 610 before crashing had fluctuations in air speed, however today's crash indicates a sudden transmission failure.
Statements released by Ethiopian Airlines:-
Accident Bulletin no. 2
Issued on march 10, 2019 at 01:46 PM pic.twitter.com/KFKX6h2mxJ— Ethiopian Airlines (@flyethiopian) March 10, 2019
Accident Bulletin no. 3
Issued on March 10, 2019 at 4:59 PM pic.twitter.com/5UOxsbl24f— Ethiopian Airlines (@flyethiopian) March 10, 2019
Airport emergency hotline
(251)11 5 17 87 33
(251)115 17 47 35
(251)11 5 17 41 00For all information necessary
(251)11 5 17 89 45
(251)11 5 17 89 87
(251)11 5 17 82 31
(251)11 5 17 85 58— Ethiopian Airlines (@flyethiopian) March 10, 2019
The maker of the aircraft Boeing released a statement:-
Boeing Statement on Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302: https://t.co/0jyiFuGHIE pic.twitter.com/NfE5S4LSlz
— Boeing Airplanes (@BoeingAirplanes) March 10, 2019