...In the months leading up to the Ethiopian Airline crash in 20219, the manufacturer did not provide critical safety information to the airline’s pilots regarding the flawed control system of the Boeing 737 MAX, despite repeated requests from the operator. This inaction is now a key point in the ongoing legal efforts to hold the manufacturer accountable for the deaths of 157 people in the crash. According to an investigation by The New York Times, concerns began to surface in late 2018, just weeks after a Lion Air 737 MAX plunged into the sea in Indonesia, killing all 189 people on board. The cause was identified as a malfunction in the aircraft’s Manoeuvering Characteristics Augmentation System (MCAS), designed to prevent the plane from stalling. The system erroneously pushed the plane’s nose down, leading to the fatal crash. Ethiopian Airlines, which also operated the same model, became concerned about the safety of its fleet and sought guidance from Boeing. The airline’s chief pilot sent urgent queries to Boeing, requesting detailed instructions on how to handle a similar malfunction in their aircraft. The request was specifically aimed at understanding what to prioritize in the event of multiple simultaneous system failures, including the handling of MCAS. Instead of providing detailed safety procedures, Boeing referred Ethiopian Airlines to a public bulletin issued after the Lion Air crash. The document summarized general emergency procedures but did not directly address the airline’s specific concerns regarding the handling of complex emergency scenarios. Boeing justified its limited response by citing international crash investigation protocols under Annex 13 of the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The company claimed it was restricted from sharing more information as it was assisting in the Lion Air crash investigation. This decision has been widely criticized by aviation safety experts, who argue that Boeing could and should have shared more critical safety information.

In March 2019, the feared scenario for Ethiopian Airlines became a reality. A 737 MAX operated by the airline experienced an MCAS malfunction shortly after taking off from Addis Ababa. The pilots faced a barrage of warnings and conflicting signals, overwhelming their ability to respond to the system failure. Within minutes, the plane plunged to the ground, killing all 157 people on board. While it is unclear whether more detailed guidance from Boeing could have completely prevented the crash, aviation experts agree that the lack of critical safety information likely contributed to the pilots’ inability to regain control of the aircraft. «Any information provided to the Ethiopian pilots, like the one we received, could have made the difference between life and death,» said Dennis Tajer, spokesperson for the Allied Pilots Association. Following the Lion Air crash, Boeing provided comprehensive briefings to U.S. pilots, including those from American Airlines. These sessions included detailed technical discussions about MCAS, covering its interaction with key aircraft systems, and long-term strategies for managing potential failures. However, Ethiopian Airlines did not receive briefings of such depth, creating a stark contrast in how safety information was shared among 737 MAX operators. Emails between Ethiopian Airlines and Boeing, obtained by The New York Times, reveal that the airline’s chief pilot was asking many of the same questions as U.S. pilots, but did not receive the same level of information. The lack of detailed guidance, experts say, left Ethiopian Airlines at a disadvantage and ultimately contributed to the second fatal crash involving the 737 MAX.

Business and Human Rights Resource Centre reached out to the company for a response, the company did not respond.