After the pressure of airline pilots stopped …

Aerolineas Argentinas currently has five models of Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft, the same one that crashed in Ethiopia on Sunday and killed 157 people. This is not the first fatal accident that features this model; Last October, one of the aircraft of the company Lion Air crashed a few minutes after taking off in Jakarta, Indonesia, and the 189 people aboard died. The concern over this model was extended yesterday when the Chinese aeronautical authorities suspended its use preemptively. "The situation is serious, we will not let you fly until your security is guaranteed," said the Air Line Pilots Association (APLA), which sent a letter to Aerolíneas Argentinas and to the airline. National Civil Aviation Administration (ANAC) requesting an urgent response.

In view of ANAC's haste and lack of response, the union has decided to suspend the participation of its pilots in the planned flights with these aircraft. The APLA reiterated in a statement that this type of decision was going on in different airlines equipped with this model of plane, before "the obligation to avoid the risk factors that would result from accidents occurring ".

The decision not to fly the five Boeing 737 MAX 8s will remain "until we receive the airlines or, in his case, the ANAC, sufficient information and guarantees from the absence of any risk in the operations with the said aircraft ", underlines the APLA Declaration. After learning of the pilots' claim, the company temporarily suspended its commercial activities with the Boeing MAX 8 until the technical report of the accident in Ethiopia. Pbadengers affected by the changes will be informed in the coming days.

The similarities between the two accidents occurring in less than six months triggered an alarm signal in some countries. After the tragedy yesterday, Ethiopian Airlines confirmed that "although not knowing the cause of the accident", it was decided to remove from circulation the entire fleet of MAX 8 traffic. The Indonesian company had already done so. The Civil Aviation Administration of China also joined the project in order to suspend the flights of these aircraft until "confirms the relevant measures to ensure the safety of flights ".

Although Aerolineas Argentinas preferred not to make statements at the beginning, it appeared that the company had called a meeting. ad hoc line managers to badyze the specific situation of these aircraft, if only to review manuals and specifications. They would wait for the US Federal Aviation Administration to make a decision. For the company, it is "premature" to draw conclusions.

The pilots, on the other hand, are very worried. "The situation is more serious than it seems because the pilots do not have information from the manufacturer, they tell us to fly it autopilot, but when the failure occurs, you can not fly automatically, "said Pablo Biró, secretary general of the APLA. The chef confirmed to Page / 12 that this morning, they sent a letter to the authorities of Aerolineas Argentinas and ANAC asking for an urgent response on the safety of these aircraft.

"They tell us what steps they will take urgently because they are not obliged to take union action to ensure the safety of pilots and pbadengers," he said. Biró, adding that many companies from different parts of the world they were making the decision to leave the fleet on shore until they know the end result of their skills.

Biró criticized the fact that the resolution of the US government is expected to make a decision. "As a country, we have the autonomy to guarantee aviation safety," said the leader.

Finally, Biró pointed out that when there was suspicion of "failure of several systems with total loss of control of the aircraft", the authorities had to take emergency safety measures while waiting for the final reports on accidents. "If the airlines do not guarantee safety, the pilots will not fly them, there has to be a very thorough badysis with the fleet ashore preventively," he said.

On Sunday, Ethiopian Airlines' Boeing 737 MAX 8 lost contact with the control six minutes after taking off and crashed near the town of Tulu Fara, on the outskirts of Bishoftu town, about 60 kilometers to the south. East of Addis Ababa. . According to company administrators, the pilot reported difficulties and asked to return. There were 157 people in the plane and there were no survivors.