People in Taiwan were stunned by two recent air crashes by local airlines which occurred within three days of each other in August, and wondered if it was safe to fly with any domestic carrier.
On Aug. 22, a China Airlines (CAL) MD-11 aircraft crash-landed at Hong Kong's Chek Lap Kok Airport during a storm, killing three and injuring over 200. Two days following the crash, a Uni Air MD-90 carrying 90 passengers burst into flames in Hualien as it taxied toward the terminal.
Taiwan's average accident rate is much higher than the international average. According to statistics provided by the Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA), Taiwan's 3.0 average accident rate per million flight-hours from 1988 to 1997 was 3.7 times higher than the global average of 0.818.
Another safety rating analysis compiled by AirSafe Journal magazine shows that CAL's record is comparable to developing coun-tries in Africa.
Amid the investigations into the causes of the accidents of the two aircraft, transportation officials have introduced new measures in an effort to both improve flight safety and to assure passengers of the reliability of local carriers.
The moves include the introduction of a scheme to allocate flight routes based on airlines' safety records, and the introduction of a rating system for passengers to use to assess an airline's safety.
One of the CAA's major concerns has been the shortage of airline safety inspectors. Because of a shortage of qualified inspectors, the CAA invited several groups of retired senior advisors from the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 1995 to assist in the training of inspectors. Following their recommendation, a full-time inspection oversight system mirroring that of the FAA's was established.
The inspectors were then assigned to various local carriers where they were to begin operations.
More than 30 inspectors were recruited in 1996 and started full-time inspections in 1997.
Since the new inspection system is still in its infancy, CAA officials said the current problem is one of manpower.
"We have a shortage of inspectors," said Chang Kuo-cheng (
According to Chang, there are currently about 40 inspectors in charge of checking aircraft, aircraft maintenance plants and pilots. The inspectors must coordinate with several thousand airport personnel.
Chang added that due to budgetary constraints, inspectors are not paid the attractive salaries that most receive in other countries. In fact, local pilots make more money -- a situation opposite to that in the US, where inspectors often pull down larger salaries than pilots.
As a result, few aviation professionals are interested in taking the position.
Industry insiders, who asked not to be identified, indicated that due to the shortage of inspectors in Taiwan, even co-pilots could be recruited as inspectors. Inspectors in the US must have at least five years' experience as pilots.
"The fact is that promises made by the Ministry of Transportation and Communications immediately after accidents to help tackle aviation problems have not been kept," said an CAA official.
The depth of inspections is another issue that needs work, according to Chang Yu-hern (張有恆), director-general of the CAA.
"Due to budget constraints, the CAA's ability to audit air carriers has been confined to carrying out only limited flight inspections and routine checks," Chang said at an international aviation safety conference held in May in Taiwan.
RSS