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Ethiopian Airlines says its pilots went through all the extra training required by Boeing and the FAA to fly the 737 Max 8 jet that crashed this month. CE Tewolde Gebremariam said Thursday that the airline's pilots completed the training meant to help them shift from an older model to the newer 737 Max 8. He said the pilots were also made aware of an emergency directive issued by the FAA following the crash of a Boeing 737 Max 8 owned by Lion Air last year. As investigators look into the crashes, attention has turned to a new software in the jets that can push their nose down in some circumstances. The New York Times reported that the pilots of the Ethiopian plane never trained in a simulator for the plane. Gebremariam said that the 737 Max simulator is not designed to simulate problems in the new jet software. <br/>

Two pilots filed complaints with the FAA about allegedly flawed training programs and poor safety procedures at Ethiopian Airlines years before a Boeing 737 Max commercial jet crashed in Ethiopia last week, according to a FAA database. The 2015 complaints, filed before the Max 8 was in use, are critical of training and pilot documentation on the 737 in use at the time, as well as 2 larger Boeing planes. They could also lead to renewed scrutiny of Ethiopian Airlines. One pilot said the airline didn’t “have the infrastructure” to support the fleet of Boeing and Airbus jets it ordered, and alleged the airline had a “fear-based” management culture in which “safety is being sacrificed for expansion and profit margin.” Another pilot criticised Ethiopian regulators for maintaining lax standards with respect to crew flight and rest time. <br/>