China Eastern grounds 737-800 fleet following crash

China Eastern has grounded its fleet of Boeing 737-800s, hours after one example crashed in central China. State broadcaster CCTV first reported news of the operational ban, noting that it was only limited to China Eastern, and not other operators. However, the broadcaster but did not indicate how long the jets — a popular narrowbody among Chinese carriers — will be grounded. The CAAC also did not comment publicly about China Eastern’s decision to halt 737-800 flights. Checks on flight tracking site FlightRadar24 appear to confirm news of the type’s grounding: China Eastern 737-800 flights from 22 March have been listed as cancelled. According to Cirium fleets data, China Eastern operates more than 100 737-800s, which are aged between 2.8 and 13.3 years old. The airline’s fleet makes up about 9% of China’s total number of -800s. Chinese carriers are prolific 737-800 operators, with more than 1,100 in-service jets. Against the global in-service 737-800 fleet, Chinese-operated jets make up more than a quarter of the total numbers. <br/>