A BOEING 737 MAX aircraft made an emergency landing yesterday after experiencing an engine problem as it was being ferried from Florida to California.

“The aircraft returned and landed safely in Orlando,” the Federal Aviation Agency said in a statement, adding that no passengers were on board the aircraft.

“The FAA is investigating,” added the agency, which grounded the Boeing 737 MAX on 13 March following two fatal plane crashes. 

A new Ethiopian Airlines 737 MAX 8 went down minutes into a flight from Addis Ababa to Nairobi on 10 March, killing all 157 people on board.

That followed the October crash of a new Lion Air jet of the same model in Indonesia, which killed 189 people shortly after takeoff from Jakarta.

The widening actions against the aircraft puts pressure on Boeing – the world’s biggest plane manufacturer – to prove that MAX planes are safe. The company has said it is rolling out flight software updates by April that could address issues with a faulty sensor.

Southwest Airlines has said that the plane travelling from Florida to California experienced an engine problem “shortly after takeoff.”

“The crew followed protocol and safely landed back at the airport” around 3pm, spokesman Chris Mainz said. 

“The Boeing 737 MAX 8 will be moved to our Orlando maintenance facility for a review.”