U.S. President Donald Trump announced Wednesday that the country will ground Boeing 737 MAX 8 and 9 planes.
“All of those planes are grounded, effective immediately,” Trump said during a scheduled briefing on border security.
READ MORE: Canada to ground Boeing 737 MAX 8 after Ethiopian Airlines crash
“Safety is our paramount concern,” the president added.
He said any plane currently in the air will go to its destination and then be grounded.
WATCH: U.S. joins Canada in banning Boeing 737 MAX 8 & 9 jets
The move comes amid mounting pressure to ground the Boeing 737 MAX 8 planes, which have been involved in two catastrophic crashes in the past six months. Over the weekend, an Ethiopian Airlines crash killed 157 people, while a Lion Air accident in October left 189 dead.
While announcing the ban, Trump voiced support for airplane manufacturer Boeing.
READ MORE: Canadian airlines warn of delays, travellers seek answers on Boeing 737 MAX 8 ban
“Boeing is an incredible company. They are working very, very hard right now and, hopefully, they’ll quickly come up with an answer,” Trump said.
The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration was among the last in the world to ban the aircraft. Canada issued the directive just hours earlier.
The FAA said the order to ground planes will remain in place during an investigation into the Ethiopian plane crash.
In its emergency order, the FAA said that new information obtained from satellite data and the wreckage itself shows some similarities between the two 737 MAX 8 crashes.
These similarities, the agency said, warrant further investigation into whether the two crashes were caused by the same issue.
Boeing responded to the FAA’s decision in a statement just after Trump’s announcement, saying it still has “full confidence” in its aircraft. The company added, however, that it recommended to the FAA the “temporary suspension of operations of the entire global fleet of 371 737 MAX aircraft.”
“We are supporting this proactive step out of an abundance of caution,” the statement added. “Safety is a core value at Boeing for as long as we have been building airplanes, and it always will be.”
U.S. airlines ground planes
The grounding of the aircraft has resulted in airlines around the world cancelling and rescheduling flights.
United said it will ground its 14 737 MAX aircraft, which account for 40 flights a day. The airline added it has spare aircraft and rebooking plans, and does not anticipate “significant operational impact.”
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American Airlines explained it has 24 aircraft affected by the order, and is working to rebook customers as soon as possible.
Delta said that it does not operate any Boeing 737 MAX 8 or 9 aircraft.
—With a file from the Associated Press
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