Indonesia's national airline Garuda on Friday said that it is cancelling a multibillion-dollar order for Boeing 737 Max 8 passenger jet after two aircraft of the said model crashed in less than five months.
CNN quoted Garuda spokesperson Ikhsan Rosan as saying, "Our passengers have lost confidence to fly with the Max 8."
The spokesperson divulged that the carrier had ordered 50 of the planes in 2014 worth 4.9 billion USD. It has taken delivery of one of them but has now sent a letter to Boeing (BA) saying it no longer wants to receive the remaining jets on order.
Meanwhile, several countries have grounded these aircraft from the fleet over safety concerns following the crash of an Ethiopian Airlines flight that killed all 157 people on board earlier this month.
Ikhsan said, "Boeing representatives are planning to visit Jakarta on March 28 to discuss the cancellation request with the airline."
The United States Justice Department on Thursday issued multiple subpoenas as a part of criminal investigation into the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) certification and marketing of Boeing 737 Max planes.
Quoting sources, CNN reported that US Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao had asked the inspector general of the Justice Department to investigate Boeing's certification and safety procedures, including training manuals for pilots, along with how the company marketed the new aircraft.
The criminal investigation of Boeing planes was initiated after the Lion Air Flight 610 plunged into the Java Sea, off the coast of Indonesia, in October 2018.
The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Seattle office and Justice Department's criminal division in Washington are leading the investigation.
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