BANGKOK, March 13 (Xinhua) -- The Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand on Wednesday announced the decision to ground Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft for seven days flowing a deadly crash in Ethiopia on Sunday involving a Boeing 737 MAX 8 jet.
Thai airlines do not operate Boeing 737 MAX 8 jets. But Thai Lion Air operates three Boeing 737 MAX 9 which have been put into use since January last year.
The authority said it will suspend the use of Thai Lion Air's Boeing 737 MAX 9 aircraft from March 14 to 20 and will continue to work on safety measures.
The authority said it has asked the airline to use other aircraft as a precautionary measure to ensure public safety.
Sunday's crash in Ethiopia was the second one involving the same model in less than five months. A Boeing 737 MAX 8 passenger jet operated by Indonesia's Lion Air crashed in October last year, killing 189 people. The two accidents caused grave concerns over the aeroplane's safety.
