MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 13th March, 2019) The French civil aviation authority (DGAC) said Tuesday it had closed the country's airspace to Boeing 737 MAX aircraft, following a deadly crash of a similar plane in Ethiopia.
Earlier in the day, UK and German aviation authorities announced similar decisions.
"Considering the circumstances of the accident in Ethiopia, the French authorities have decided, as a safeguard measure, to forbid all commercial flights made on Boeing 737 MAX to, from or over the French territory," the DGAC said in a statement.
The agency added that French airlines did not operate these aircraft.
The Corriere della Sera newspaper reported Italy would also close its airspace to Boeing 737 Max 8 airliners from Tuesday night until the cause of the Ethiopian Airlines crash was established. Similar decision was reportedly made by the Netherlands.
The United Kingdom, Germany, Malaysia and Australia are among the countries which have either banned Boeing 737 Max 8 from its airspace or said they would not permit the plane to take off and land on their territory.
On Sunday, a Nairobi-bound Boeing 737 MAX 8, operated by Ethiopian Airlines, crashed minutes after takeoff from Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. All 157 people from over 30 countries aboard the flight were killed.
The crash is the second disaster involving Boeing 737 MAX 8. Last October, a new Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX 8 flight went down over the Java Sea, killing over 180 people.
