There's been a huge demand for the 737 Max since its launch in 2011, with more than 5,000 orders. But, two deadly incidents claiming close to 350 lives have raised questions about the plane's future. Our correspondent Miro Lu reports from Singapore.

The 737 Max aircraft, the workhorse of the aviation industry, Boeing's fastest-selling family of planes.

But two crashes within a short span of five months have raised questions about the airworthiness of the single-aisle aircraft. For experts it is hard to ignore the glaring similarities between the Lion Air crash from October last year and the recent Ethiopian Airlines crash.

LEITHEN FRANCIS AVIATION ANALYST "You had a situation where it is the same aircraft, the 737-8 max, you had a situation where they both crashed at high speed soon after take-off. And it is very unusual for aircraft, commercial aircraft to have an accident like that happen."

Within hours of the crash, a wave of panic spread among flyers across the globe, most resorting to cancellations or changing flights to avoid the doomed aircraft.

Anubhav Bhushan is a frequent flyer. His work requires him to travel nearly 200 days a year and the 737 Max is an aircraft that operates on several sectors that he flies to.

ANUBHAV BHUSHAN FREQUENT FLYER "It is causing a great level of anxiety especially amongst us frequent flyers."

Given that we still do not have all the facts, it is still better to be safe than sorry. I can share with you personally that I changed one of my flights in the region after realizing that it was 737.”

Safety concerns and souring public opinion have prompted most civil aviation authorities to ground the Max, with China and Singapore being among the first to act.

"The Singapore government has taken a quick and resolute action and they should be commended for it."

Back home in America - after initially hesitating to take drastic measures, the Federal Aviation Administration suspended the aircraft after citing new satellite data.

MIRO LU SINGAPORE "Boeing has announced that it will upgrade software systems in all their 737 Max 8 aircraft by April. Calling the upgrade an enhancement - and not linking it to the recent crash - the aviation giant says the upgrade has been in the works since the Lion Air accident. But aviation experts we spoke to are not entirely convinced by Boeing's solution."

LEITHEN FRANCIS AVIATION ANALYST "There have been a number of derivatives of that aircraft developed and the more recent derivative 737 Max has much larger, much heavier engines than the previous 737, so what that does is that impacts on the weight and balance of the aircraft and Boeing has put in a system that can help to counter that, but fundamentally, that's the main concern that I have is the sheer weight of those engines on that air frame."

The real cause of the two accidents will only be answered once the investigation reports come out. But one thing for sure is that it may be a while before travellers feel safe flying on the 737 Max aircraft. Miro Lu, CGTN, Singapore.