US Federal Aviation Administration

Boeing 737 Max aircraft grounded 'until May at least'

The aircraft will not fly until a software update can be tested and installed, the US regulator said.

Sunday's crash, shortly after take-off from Addis Ababa, killed 157 people from 35 nations.

It was the second crash involving a 737 Max in six months.

Some people have pointed to similarities between the incidents, with some experts citing satellite data and evidence from the crash scene as showing links between Sunday's disaster and October's crash in Indonesia of the Lion Air jet that killed 189 people.

FAA says Boeing 737 Max 8 is airworthy

An Ethiopian Airlines plane en route from Addis Ababa to Nairobi crashed six minutes after take-off on Sunday, killing all 157 people on board.

The incident followed Lion Air 737 Max 8 crash in October that killed 189.

Some in the aviation community have called for the aircraft to be grounded pending a full investigation.

But late on Monday, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a "continued airworthiness notification" saying the plane was safe to fly.