Acting in accordance with a directive issued by the UAE’s General Civil Aviation Authority (GCAA), flydubai has grounded its Boeing 737 MAX fleet. The carrier has reportedly grounded 11 Boeing 737 MAX 8 and two Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft as a result of the mandate.
To compensate, flydubai has adjusted its schedule and will now operate flights with its fleet of Boeing 737-800 aircraft.
“flydubai is adjusting its schedule to minimise disruption to passengers and will operate flights with its fleet of Next-Generation Boeing 737-800 aircraft. Where there are flight cancellations flydubai will contact passengers directly,” read a statement from a flydubai spokesperson.
“flydubai continues to be in touch with the manufacturer and regulator,” it added.
The move is the latest development in the ongoing crisis that has engulfed Boeing following the fatal Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET 302 that happened earlier this week.
The UAE joins Oman and Kuwait as a few of the Gulf Cooperation Council nations to ban the use of the aircraft. At this time, there have been no announcements from Saudi Arabia in restricting the use of 737 Max 8 aeroplanes.
Over the past week, the European Union, UK, Malaysia, India, Indonesia, Singapore, Australia and China, have banned the Boeing 737 MAX 8 from operating within their respective airspaces.
In the US, the Federal Aviation Administration has not yet grounded the aircraft but has ordered Boeing to introduce critical software updates for the aeroplane by April 2019.