Boeing Warns 737 Max May Plunge Due to Error After Lion Air Crash

A Lion Air passenger jet takes off from Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, Indonesia, in a 2012 file photo. Photo: Trisnadi
A Lion Air passenger jet takes off from Juanda International Airport in Surabaya, Indonesia, in a 2012 file photo. Photo: Trisnadi

JAKARTA — Boeing Co. says it has issued a safety bulletin that reiterates guidelines on how pilots should respond to erroneous data from an “angle of attack” sensor following last week’s crash of a Boeing plane in Indonesia that killed 189 people.

The airplane manufacturer said in a statement Wednesday that Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee has indicated the crashed Boeing 737 MAX 8 plane had “erroneous input from one of its AOA sensors.”

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The angle of attack sensor keeps track of the angle of the aircraft nose relative to oncoming air to prevent the plane from stalling and diving.

Boeing said it is continuing to work with the Indonesian investigation into the Oct. 29 crash.

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Indonesian investigators on Monday said an airspeed indicator had malfunctioned on the plane’s last four flights.