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We commiserate with the people of Ethiopia following the catastrophic crash of a Boeing 737-8 MAX Ethiopian Airlines plane on Sunday.

Our thoughts, hearts and prayers particularly go out to the families of the 157 passengers who were on board when the aircraft plunged to the ground shortly after take off from Bole International Airport bound for Kenya at about 8.44AM. 

The crash, which claimed the lives of all passengers, has reverberated around the world with global leaders expressing their shock and grief at the tragedy which is unprecedented given the advances in aviation technology and massive improvements in airline safety standards.

The disaster is especially devastating for Boeing, the giant aeroplane maker with an impeccable track record in the industry but whose reputation is increasingly coming under intense scrutiny following a second crash of a jet of a similar model in a short space of time. 

We call on the company to leave no stone unturned at it seeks to find answers to the cause of the crash because the entire world is on tenterhooks while its very future hinges on the outcome of the ongoing investigations.

It doesn’t help that in October last year, a Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX 8 came down in Indonesia, killing 189 people, and prompted a global aviation scare. 

On Monday, there was widespread panic with China, Indonesia and Singapore grounding their fleet of Boeing 737 MAX 8 aircraft while Australia yesterday announced the suspension of flights of the same model.

Ethiopian Airlines, which has four other 737 MAX 8 jets, also grounded them as a precaution while India announced a safety review and new instructions for local carriers. Boeing’s share price plunged at the prospect that two such crashes in a short time could reveal flaws in its new plane. 

The 737 MAX 8 entered service less than two years ago and are set to be workhorses for airlines around the world.

The company has already accepted orders for more than 5 000 of the new, high fuel economy planes which are among the industry’s most reliable.

However, the latest crash could spell doom for the giant United States plane maker amid concerns about the safety of its newest aircraft.

While investigators are still seeking to find the cause of the crash with the black box containing both the cockpit voice recorder and digital flight data having been discovered on Monday, the fact that both the Ethiopian and Indonesian planes crashed shortly after take-off points to a similar problem.

Ethiopian Airlines said its pilot Yared Getachew had a commendable record and more than 8 000 hours of flying experience, diminishing chances of human error. 

It said Getachew had reported difficulties and had wanted to return while flight tracking website Flightradar24 tweeted that the flight had unstable vertical speed after take-off. 

The Sweden-based service said the aircraft had climbed almost 1 000 feet after taking off from Addis Ababa, dipped about 450 feet before rapidly climbing another 900 feet until the point where satellite tracking data was lost. 

Even though investigators are still to piece together what led to the catastrophe, technical problems with the plane most likely caused the crash.

The human toll was immense with 22 staff of the United Nations among the dead.

The casualties, from more than 30 nations, included aid workers, doctors, professors of literature and botany, a law student, a newly wed woman.

A father soon expecting a child and a couple who recently had a baby. On Sunday, President Mnangagwa sent his condolences to families of passengers who died in the crash.

“I send my condolences and prayers to all the families of those who lost their lives today on the Ethiopian Airlines flight to Nairobi. Our thoughts and strength go out to our African brothers and sisters and all those affected by this terrible tragedy,” he said. 

We also console the people of Ethiopia and other nations that lost their loved ones in the tragedy and hope they can find strength during these difficult times.

Ethiopian Airlines is the pride of Africa as it is the biggest and best airline on the continent and we hope the latest incident does not besmirch that record. 

Voted the Best Airline in Africa in 2018, the airline prides itself for its reasonably priced tickets, efficient service delivery, a good safety record and a wide network of flights.

It is one of the few airlines turning a profit in the continent and in the financial year 2017/2018, Ethiopian Airlines made profits of $245 million (£187m) and carried 10.6 million people. 

It has since expanded and its fleet of 111 planes is larger than any other airline on the continent, flying to 106 international and 23 domestic destinations.

Crucially for Zimbabwe, the airline recently offered Air Zimbabwe a life-saving partnership deal that will see it bring planes, train pilots and also help the national airliner become an aircraft maintenance hub in Sadc.