Table of Contents
- China Eastern Airlines is China’s second-largest carrier by passenger numbers after China Southern Airlines.
What has happened in India?
- India has decided to put the Boeing 737 fleets of Indian carriers on ‘enhanced surveillance’ after a Boeing 737-800 plane of China Eastern Airlines crashed into a mountain, causing a large fire on Monday, reported PTI, quoting DGCA chief Arun Kumar.
- “Flight safety is serious business and we are closely studying the situation. In the interim, we are focusing on enhanced surveillance of our 737 fleet,” the news agency quoted Kumar as saying.
What does enhanced surveillance mean?
- Given the unusual circumstances of the accident involving a China Eastern-operated Boeing 737-800 aircraft,
- The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) has deployed monitoring teams to ensure that the 737 fleets of Indian carriers are operated and maintained as per norms.
- 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 narrow bodied aircraft, and the American plane maker 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 737 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.
Q) Which of the following type of aircraft requires the longest runway for take-off?
- Aircraft that uses turboprop
- Aircraft that uses turbojet
- Aircraft that uses piston engine
- Aircraft that uses turbofan
Latest Burning Issues | Free PDF
WhatsApp