Indonesia allows Boeing’s 737 MAX to fly again after deadly crash

JAKARTA, Dec 28 (Reuters)- Indonesia has lifted a ban on the Boeing 737 MAX, its transport ministry said on Tuesday, three years after the crash of one of the aircraft operated by domestic carrier Lion Air with the loss of all 189 people on board.

Aviation authorities around the world grounded the aircraft months later after a similarly deadly accident in March 2019 involving one of the aircraft operated by Ethiopian Airlines.

The approval for the aircraft's return in Indonesia comes months after it returned to service in the United States and Europe, and follows more recent lifting of grounding orders in countries including Australia, Japan, India, Malaysia, Singapore and Ethiopia.

The lifting of the ban was effective immediately and it follows the evaluation of changes to the aircraft's system by regulators, the ministry said in a statement.

Airlines must follow airworthiness directives and inspect their planes before they can fly the 737 MAX again, it said, adding that the government would also inspect the planes.