China Eastern Airlines grounds 223 Boeing 737-800 aircraft

China Eastern Airlines and its subsidiaries have temporarily grounded 223 Boeing 737-800 aircraft after one such plane with 132 people on board crashed earlier this week in south China's Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region, an airline official said Thursday.

All grounded aircraft are undergoing checks and maintenance according to the highest safety standard to ensure that they meet the airworthiness requirements, Liu Xiaodong, head of the airline's publicity department, told a press briefing.

He added that the airline has launched a sweeping safety overhaul following the air crash.

All other passenger planes of China Eastern Airlines, currently in operation, meet the airworthiness requirements of Chinese aviation authorities, Liu said.