Prosecutors yesterday began questioning three Singapore Airlines pilots whose jumbo jet crashed taking off on the wrong runway two years ago in Taipei, killing 83 people.
The prosecutors, who might file manslaughter charges against the pilots, wanted to ask the men why they used the runway, which was closed for repairs and cluttered with construction equipment including two huge mechanical shovels, prosecutor Chiang Kuei-chang (姜貴昌) said.
After questioning the pilots, "we'll make a preliminary decision about whether the pilots will be prosecuted," Chiang said.
Last month, investigators concluded that the crash was likely caused by pilot mistakes and a fierce storm from an approaching typhoon.
The investigators said that the pilots could have prevented the October 2000 accident if they had used airport navigation charts, requested taxi assistance during the storm or referred to heading references before takeoff.
Investigators and pilot unions traditionally oppose the prosecution of pilots who are not accused of crashing planes because of gross negligence, such as being intoxicated.
They fear that the threat of prosecution discourages pilots from cooperating in investigations that help improve safety.
The prosecutors have argued that Taiwan's law requires them to do their own investigation of an accident that killed so many people.
Ho Yip-wing, a Taiwan-based general manager for Singapore Airlines, told reporters that the firm was cooperating with the prosecutors.
When asked what the company would do if prosecutors refused to release the pilots, Ho said, "After it [the questioning] is over, we'll research that problem."
Singapore Airlines has long been ranked as one of the world's safest airlines. Before the crash of Los Angeles-bound Flight SQ006, the airline operated for 28 years without directly experiencing a fatal crash.
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