China orders its airlines to suspend use of Boeing 737 MAX aircraft

FILE PHOTO: Workers attend a ceremony marking the 1st delivery of a Boeing 737 Max 8 airplane to Air China at the Boeing Zhoushan completion center in Zhoushan, Zhejiang province, China, December 15, 2018. REUTERS/Thomas Peter/File Photo

SHANGHAI (Reuters) - China's aviation regulator said on Monday it had ordered Chinese airlines to suspend their Boeing Co 737 MAX aircraft operations by 6 p.m. (1000 GMT) following a deadly crash of one of the planes in Ethiopia.

An Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX 8 bound for Nairobi crashed minutes after take-off on Sunday, killing all 157 people on board.