Explained: India’s own B-737 fleet, and what govt is doing in wake of China crash

This will happen till the cause for the China Eastern crash, and the role of the aircraft in it, is ascertained.

Why is this relevant?

Boeing 737 is the world’s most popular narrowbodied aircraft, and the American planemaker has sold more 737s than any other manufacturer has managed to sell their models. Notably, two Boeing 737 Max aircraft were involved in accidents in the six month period between October 2018 and March 2019, killing a total of 346 people.

Following these two accidents, the DGCA had banned Boeing 737 Max planes in India in March 2019. After Boeing made necessary software rectifications to the satisfaction of the DGCA, the ban on the aircraft’s commercial operations was lifted after 27 months in August last year.

Was the China Eastern plane different from the 737 Max?

Yes, Boeing 737 Max aircraft is an advanced version of Boeing 737-800, though both belong to the 737 family. The older version of 737 planes is called Boeing 737NG.

How many of these are flown in India?

Budget carrier SpiceJet has a total of 60 Boeing 737 family planes in its fleet. Of these, 13 are 737 Max and 47 are 737NG. Among the older version planes, SpiceJet has 36 Boeing 737-800s, five smaller Boeing 737-700s, and five larger Boeing 737-900s, according to information on the company’s website.

Air India Express has 24 Boeing 737-800 planes, while Vistara has five 737-800 aircraft in its fleet.

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