UPDATED 3/13/18 3:43 p.m. ET:
President Trump announced Wednesday that the United States will be grounding Boeing’s 737 Max aircraft, after the model was involved in two crashes over the course of five months. Trump made the announcement from the White House, explaining that the Boeing planes currently in the air would remain at their destination upon arrival.
The announcement comes days after the Federal Aviation Administration avoided grounding the aircraft following the Ethiopian Airlines crash, despite the dozens of nations which had banned the planes from further use.
See original story published on 3/12/19 below.
Following the Ethiopian Airlines crash that killed 157 individuals, representing 35 nationalities, at least 23 airlines have taken their Boeing 737 Max 8 models out of service. The Ethiopia crash marks the second crash involving the model in five months, prompting a mass investigation into what caused the incident.
The model's piloting software poses a serious threat to aviation safety, prompting nations across the world to call for airlines to ground the Boeing model, including the European Union, Britain, and China. Donald Trump has also shared his thoughts on the matter, calling planes "too complex" and reiterating that he doesn't want Albert Einstein, who's been dead for quite some time, to be his pilot.
"Airplanes are becoming far too complex to fly. Pilots are no longer needed, but rather computer scientists from MIT," Mr. Trump tweeted. "I see it all the time in many products. Always seeking to go one unnecessary step further, when often old and simpler is far better."
At least for now, the F.A.A. has notably decided against grounding the Boeing model, with American Airlines and Southwest still utilizing that type of aircraft. Many people took to Twitter to respond to the president's senseless remarks, seriously calling his intelligence into question.
