Ethiopian Airlines
Flight 409
Boeing 737-8AS
registered ET-ANB
s/n 29935

British, French and Cypriot aircraft and a U.S. warship joined rescue crews searching the Mediterranean Sea off Lebanon's coast Monday, where an Ethiopian Airlines flight crashed with 90 people aboard. By the afternoon, crews had found 21 bodies but no survivors, a Lebanese military spokesman said.Ethiopian Airlines Flight 409 left Rafik Hariri International Airport in Beirut about 2:30 a.m. and was headed to the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. It disappeared from radar a few minutes after takeoff, said Ghazi El Aridi, Lebanon's minister of public works and transportation. Authorities did not immediately know the cause of the crash. "We don't believe that there is any indication for sabotage or foul play," Lebanese President Michel Suleiman said.Aircraft History
The aircraft involved was a Boeing 737-8AS, with registration ET-ANB. The aircraft was delivered to its original operator Ryanair in January 2002, and was transferred to Ethiopian Airlines in September 2009 (ET-ANB Photo: Antony J. Best). This is the third crash of an Ethiopian Airlines jet airliner that has resulted in the death of at least one passenger. The first was a September 1988 bird strike event involving a 737-200, and the most recent was a ditching of a 767-200 during a hijacking in 1996.Ethiopian Airlines Fleet
According to the Ethiopian Airlines web site the airline has an operating fleet of 37 aircraft, including three 737-800s. AeroTransport Data Bank has additional fleet details, including average age by model. The airline has 45 aircraft on order, including 10 737-800s, 10 787s, and five 777-200s.