A tweet from the U.S. Embassy advising American citizens to avoid Bole International Airport in Addis Ababa on March 10, 2019, drew scrutiny after Ethiopian Airlines Flight ET302 crashed six minutes after takeoff the same day. The Boeing 737-800MAX, delivered four months earlier, was en route to Nairobi with 149 passengers and eight crew members when it crashed, according to reports.
The warning prompted inquiries about whether local security agencies had disregarded intelligence from U.S. authorities. Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed's office issued a statement expressing condolences to victims' families, while Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and opposition leader Raila Odinga also extended sympathies. Ethiopian Airlines confirmed the crash in an accident bulletin released March 10, 2019, and pledged to provide updates as information became available.
Kenya Airways offered support to Ethiopian Airlines, and international media outlets like Sky News reported the incident shortly after it occurred. Quotes from officials and airline representatives highlighted the tragedy's impact, with Ethiopian Airlines describing the aircraft as a newly delivered 737-800MAX.
