Ethiopian Airlines plane’s black box is found but is damaged

The black box and cockpit voice recorder from a downed Ethiopian Airlines plane have been recovered as questions continued to swirl around the cause of the fatal crash.

However, the box is partially damaged and an airline official tells The Associated Press “we will see what we can retrieve from it.”

The official spoke on condition of anonymity for lack of authorization to speak to the media.

The plane crashed shortly after takeoff from Addis Ababa on Sunday en route to Nairobi and killed all 157 people on board, including 18 Canadians.

The accident was strikingly similar to last year’s crash of a Lion Air jet that plunged into the Java Sea, killing 189 people. Both crashes involved the Boeing 737 Max 8, and both happened minutes after the jets became airborne.

Officials in Ethiopia, China and Indonesia grounded their Boeing Max 8 aircraft.

WestJet and Air Canada, both of whom operate Max 8 aircraft, have indicated they intend to keep flying the planes and touted their safety performance in recent years.

Air Canada’s 24 Max 8 aircraft have performed “excellently” and met safety and reliability standards, the airline said in an email.

In response to concerns raised by social media users, WestJet Airlines Ltd. tweeted Monday that it is not grounding any of its 13 Max 8s, and is “working with Boeing to ensure the continued safe operation of our Max fleet.”

The Boeing jetliner is relatively new, entering into service at both airlines in 2017 and flying routes for Air Canada that include Vancouver to Montreal and Calgary to Vancouver.

Boeing says it is not issuing new guidance to airlines about its 737 Max 8 aircraft after a second fatal crash on Sunday.

A statement Monday referred questions about the grounding of planes to airlines and aviation authorities. It said “at this point, based on the information available, we do not have any basis to issue new guidance to operators.”

In a statement from his office Monday morning, Transport Minister Marc Garneau said the certification process for the Max 8 aircraft was led by American authorities and a United States National Transportation Safety Board team was sent to the site.

“Transport Canada officials are working with their American counterparts in order to assess next steps,” said the statement. “Safety is our absolute priority and Canadians can rest assured that we take all the necessary actions to ensure the safety of our skies.”

With files from The Associated Press and The Canadian Press

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