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Phuket crash, a wake-up call

The air tragedy in Phuket that has claimed at least 90 lives, most of them of foreign tourists, must be an eye-opener to airlines as well as airports around the world. In this era of low-cost carriers and competitive fares, and the resultant proliferation of airlines and airports, highest standards of safety and security are called for at all times and in all places. A probe has just begun into the crash-landing of the Orient Thai Airline’s One-Two-Go MD-82 aircraft that carried 130 persons, including the crew. It will take a while before the actual causes of the disaster come to light. But it is obvious that the weather at the time of landing played a significant role in causing the mishap. The survivors have spoken of a sudden “drop down” and of the aircraft losing its balance after landing in the international airport of this island in southern Thailand. The plane crashed into a wooded embankment in the airport, split into two, and was soon engulfed in flames. A basic question that needs to be asked is: why was the aircraft allowed to land in torrential rain and when visibility was poor? Both the pilots were killed. The Black boxes have been recovered and they should provide some vital clues.

There are some obvious lessons from this tragedy not just for Thailand, but also for India and most of Asia, especially the developing countries, where aviation and tourism seem to be growing at a rapid pace. The huge increase in the number of airlines and the competitive tariffs that have come with it have no doubt benefited the passengers. At the same time, this development has brought into sharp focus the need for a fresh and close look at the safety and security standards. It is significant that the International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) begins its annual assembly session at Montreal on September 18, with precisely these concerns on the agenda. The ICAO has promised to make public its country-wise safety audit by 2008. That should provide useful and pointed information to tourists and frequent fliers on the safety standards of airlines as well as airports and aircraft in every country. The organisation must lay down the ground rules for a competent and statutory regulatory body in all its 190-member countries to deal with the problems of the aviation sector and industry. From the training of pilots and crew to the landing systems at the airports, a whole range of issues need to be addressed at the Montreal meeting. The shortage of trained pilots has become a major issue in this unplanned growth. When the safety audit goes public, it would force governments and aviation authorities across the world to wake up and address the specific deficiencies brought out.

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