No Boeing 737 MAX 8 in Kenyan Airspace, Gov't Says

The government says no Kenyan airline operates the Boeing 737 Max 8 that has now been grounded in several countries over safety concerns.

The European Union, Britain, India, Ethiopia, and China have joined other countries in grounding the Boeing 737 Max 8 after a second crash involving the model in less than five months killed everyone on board.

A new Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX 8 crashed six minutes after taking off from Addis Ababa to Nairobi on Sunday, killing all 157 people on board.

Kenya's Ministry of Transport says no local or foreign carriers operating in the Kenyan airspace are currently using the model.

“We wish to state that no Kenya air operator has in their fleet the affected aircraft type,” says Transport Cabinet Secretary James Macharia in a statement.

Macharia also says the Ethiopian Airlines has committed to supporting relatives of those killed in the accident.
 
Kenya lost 32 citizens in the crash, the highest, followed by Canada (18) and Ethiopia (9). 

China, Italy and the US lost 8 each while Britain and France lost seven citizens each in the crash.

A similar Lion Air flight killed all the 189 passengers on board after it crashed 13 minutes after leaving Jakarta airport in October 2018.

Other countries that have grounded the aircraft include Australia, Indonesia, Oman, and Malaysia.