Nader's Message to Boeing: Ground the Planes Now

President Donald Trump grounded the planes this afternoon.

Consumer advocate Ralph Nader believes Boeing should ground its fleet of 737 Max 8 airplanes. 

The message comes as the world struggles to understand what happened to Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, which crashed Sunday, March 10, killing 157. The accident came just four months after the crash of Indonesian Lion Air Flight 610 in October—also a 737 Max 8. 

Click Here: All Blacks Rugby Jersey

Nader’s grand-niece, Samya Stumo, died in the crash. The Sheffield, Mass., native was an employee of education publisher ThinkWell and was ultimately headed to Uganda for work.

In an open letter to Boeing executives published Wednesday, Nader said that the airplane manufacturer was behaving as a company “used to having its way” and not in the interests of American lives. 

“Stop digging in your heels,” Nader wrote. “Tell the airlines to stop digging in their heels.”

In response to the Ethiopian Airlines disaster, most countries across the world grounded the planes. The European Union shut down flights by the plane, taking down a fleet that makes up two thirds of the total number of planes in use. The U.S. stands almost alone in its continued use of the 737 Max 8. 

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), in a statement, said it saw no evidence the planes were unsafe.

“The FAA continues to review extensively all available data and aggregate safety performance from operators and pilots of the Boeing 737 MAX,” the agency said. “Thus far, our review shows no systemic performance issues and provides no basis to order grounding the aircraft.”