TORONTO -- After more than a year of intense scrutiny surrounding Boeing’s 737 jets, another crash Wednesday involving one of the company’s airliners threatens to add to the crisis at the company.
A Ukraine International Airlines Boeing 737-800 jet went down Wednesday killing all 176 people on board, including 63 Canadians.
On the tail of the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines crashes in October 2018 and March 2019, respectively, in which nearly 350 people died, the question of which Boeing jet model crashed in Iran was top of mind for many travellers on Wednesday.
“Is this another faulty Boeing 737 MAX tragedy?” social media users asked online.
In a tweeted statement, the company said it was “ready to assist” after the crash. “This is a tragic event and our heartfelt thoughts are with the crew, passengers, and their families. We are in contact with our airline customer and stand by them in this difficult time,” it said.
The 737-800 is part of the “Next Generation” series that first took flight in 1997. It is among several variants of the third generation of 737s, the fourth of which is the Boeing 737 MAX series, which was grounded around the world after the Lion Air and Ethiopian Airlines disasters.
The 737-800 has been involved in several fatal accidents including in 2006, when a GOL Airlines flight collided midair with a business jet, and in 2007, when a Kenya Airways flight crashed in Kenya, killing 105. In 2010, an Air India Express flight overshot the runway, killing 158 people.
In December, Boeing delivered the last ever built aircraft in the “Next Generation” fleet, a 737-800, to KLM Royal Dutch Airlines.
