UK, France and Germany join countries banning Boeing 737 MAX aircraft

Britain, France and Germany have banned Boeing 737 MAX aircraft from their airspace following a deadly plane crash in Ethiopia, mirroring a decision taken by other nations.

The UK Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement headlined "Boeing 737 MAX Aircraft" that "as a precautionary measure" it had decided "to stop any commercial passenger flights from any operator arriving, departing or overflying UK airspace"

Australia and Singapore on Tuesday also banned Boeing 737 MAX planes from their airspace and airlines.

The Ethiopian Airlines crash on Sunday happened minutes into a flight to Nairobi, killing all 157 people on board. It came after a Lion Air jet of the same model crashed in Indonesia in October, killing 189.

Investigators have recovered the black box flight recorders from the Ethiopian Airlines plane, which went down near Addis Ababa carrying passengers and crew from 35 countries -- including some two dozen UN staff.

US regulators have ordered Boeing to make urgent improvements to the model and insisted they would take action if safety issues are detected.

But it was not enough to reassure aviation authorities in other countries.

China, a hugely important market for...