Infographic

How the 737 Max Series Went Wheels Down All Over the World

The Ethiopian Airlines crash brought flights on the latest iteration of Boeing’s best-selling aircraft to a standstill in only five days.

737-Max-Series-Flights
737-Max-Series-Flights
Flight data courtesy of Flightradar24

A total of 1,257 of Boeing’s 737 Max series aircraft filled the skies last Sunday, the same day that a Max 8 belonging to Ethiopian Airlines crashed shortly after takeoff near Addis Ababa, killing 157 people. By noon Coordinated Universal Time on Thursday, based on transponder readings, only one active 737 Max series aircraft was left.

A total of 1,257 of Boeing’s 737 Max series aircraft filled the skies last Sunday, the same day that a Max 8 belonging to Ethiopian Airlines crashed shortly after takeoff near Addis Ababa, killing 157 people. By noon Coordinated Universal Time on Thursday, based on transponder readings, only one active 737 Max series aircraft was left.

Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 was the second 737 Max 8 crash in five months, following last October’s Lion Air disaster in Indonesia, which killed 189 people, and it set off a chain reaction of orders to ground Boeing’s 737 Max series aircraft. What started with China was followed by over 40 countries over the next two days. By Wednesday, Canada and the United States followed suit, and the last passenger-carrying Max 8 landed in Newark. 

To illustrate this dramatic decline, Foreign Policy created a GIF using data from Flightradar24’s live Flight Tracker. Above you’ll see the number of active Max series airplanes each day from March 10 to 14, at 12 p.m. UTC. On Monday most of the Max aircraft disappear over China. By Wednesday most of the flights left travel through North America, the one continent left still allowing the Max series to fly. 

Although all 737 Max aircraft were grounded by the end of March 13, Flightradar24 tweeted that flights continued to occur as operators ferried the planes back to bases for storage. 

But what about the lone Max 8 in Shenzhen on Thursday, days after China grounded the aircraft?

“The transponder was powered on, but the aircraft was stationary,” Ian Petchenik of Flightradar24’s Media and Community Relations department told FP. After only 13 minutes, the transponder turned off and the map was empty. 

  Twitter: @seekayhickey

More from Foreign Policy

Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.
Newspapers in Tehran feature on their front page news about the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, signed in Beijing the previous day, on March, 11 2023.

Saudi-Iranian Détente Is a Wake-Up Call for America

The peace plan is a big deal—and it’s no accident that China brokered it.

Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.
Austin and Gallant stand at podiums side by side next to each others' national flags.

The U.S.-Israel Relationship No Longer Makes Sense

If Israel and its supporters want the country to continue receiving U.S. largesse, they will need to come up with a new narrative.

Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.
Russian President Vladimir Putin lays flowers at the Moscow Kremlin Wall in the Alexander Garden during an event marking Defender of the Fatherland Day in Moscow.

Putin Is Trapped in the Sunk-Cost Fallacy of War

Moscow is grasping for meaning in a meaningless invasion.

An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.
An Iranian man holds a newspaper reporting the China-brokered deal between Iran and Saudi Arabia to restore ties, in Tehran on March 11.

How China’s Saudi-Iran Deal Can Serve U.S. Interests

And why there’s less to Beijing’s diplomatic breakthrough than meets the eye.