After the Ethiopia incident, India also stopped the flight of Boeing 737 Max aircraft

India’s aviation watchdog DGCA has decided to immediately ground the Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, days after an Ethiopian Airline crash killed 157 people, including four Indians. The planes will stay grounded till appropriate modifications and safety measures are undertaken to ensure their safe operations, the Civil Aviation Ministry announced on Tuesday evening.

“As always, passenger safety remains our top priority. We continue to consult closely with regulators around the world, airlines, and aircraft manufacturers to ensure passenger safety,” Civil Aviation Ministry said on Twitter.

Among Indian carriers, SpiceJet has 13 jets of the model 8 variant in its 75-strong fleet while Jet Airways has five such aircraft.

Following the DGCA’s decision, both the airlines have suspended the operation of their 737 MAX 8 jets.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation or DGCA had on Monday ordered additional maintenance checks for the planes but stopped short of ordering their grounding. It also directed Indian carriers to ensure that pilots have 1,000 hours and co-pilots 500 hours of flying experience on the 737 MAX 8.

US regulators on Monday ordered Boeing to make urgent improvements to the best-selling jet involved in the fatal Ethiopia plane crash — but ruled out grounding the fleet as investigators worked to piece together the aircraft’s final moments while US carriers appear to maintain confidence in the manufacturer.