DGCA lifts ban on Boeing 737 Max jets

India's aviation watchdog Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Thursday lifted its ban on Boeing 737 Max jets.

Earlier in April, DGCA allowed the Boeing 737 Max aircraft to fly but under certain conditions. However, the use of Boeing 737 Max aircraft for commercial use remains prohibited in India.

The order issued by the DGCA on April 20 this year had made certain exceptions to the previous order of March 13, 2019 that had banned all operations of B737 Max in India because of two deadly crashes reported in a span of five months.

The Boeing max jets were grounded by the Director General after accidents involving Boeing 737 Max (Lion Air Flight 610 and Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302).

The Director General, for the purpose of safety, had directed that the operation of Boeing Company Model 737-8 and Boeing Company Model 737-9 would not take place from/to Indian airports and transit to enter into Indian airspace from March 13, 2019.

In October 2018, the newest member of Boeing's 737 narrow-body family- 737 Max crashed in the Java Sea shortly after takeoff from Jakarta, Indonesia. Then another aircraft of the same model crashed in Ethiopia in March 2019. In both these plane accidents, 346 people lost their lives. Investigations into the crashes revealed errors in the functioning of the jet's piloting system, lapses in Boeing's safety standard procedures and cover-ups by company officials.

( With inputs from ANI )