A shadow over flight’s golden age
The crash of Ethiopian Airlines flight ET302 is an ominous sign for the world’s aircraft duopoly
WHEN A BOEING 737 MAX 8 crashed near Addis Ababa after take-off on March 10th, 157 people lost their lives. It did not take long for the human tragedy to raise questions about what went wrong. That has fed a crisis of trust in Boeing and in the FAA, the American regulator which, even as its counterparts grounded the MAX 8, left it flying for three days before President Donald Trump stepped in, suspending all MAX planes.
Mr Trump noted that Boeing was “an incredible company”. In fact the crash is a warning. After a 20-year boom, one of the West’s most sophisticated industries faces a difficult future.
This article appeared in the Leaders section of the print edition under the headline "Plane truths"
Leaders March 16th 2019
From the March 16th 2019 edition
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