The Taiwan Transportation Safety Board (TTSB) yesterday confirmed that Taipei International Airport (Songshan airport) has had safety installations, such as engineered materials arresting systems (EMAS), since 2009, amid concerns following a fatal crash at a South Korean airport on Sunday.
Responding to questions about the relatively short runway at Songshan airport during a legislative hearing, board chairman Lin Shinn-der (林信德) said that the end of the runway had been fitted with an EMAS — crushable material designed to stop an aircraft that overruns.
A Jeju Air Boeing 737-800 passenger plane on Sunday crashed at Muan International Airport, before smashing into a barrier and bursting into flames, killing 179 of the 181 people on board.
Photo courtesy of Taipei International Airport
Democratic Progressive Party Legislator Lee Kun-tse (李昆澤) said that the runway at Muan airport is 2.8km long and Songshan airport’s is 2.6km long, adding that a TransAsia Airways plane nearly overran the runway in Taipei in 2004.
The aim of an EMAS is to prevent a plane that overruns and hits a barrier from being totally destroyed, Lin said, adding that many airports in urban areas with shorter runways depend on such systems.
Before the EMAS was fully installed in 2009, only smaller planes were cleared to land at Songshan airport, but now it can accommodate larger aircraft, he said.
In addition to the EMAS, the airport has used other special materials to construct its enclosing wall, offering further protection in the event of a crash, he added.
Following the Jeju Air crash, Lin said the TTSB would advise the Civil Aviation Administration to study what had happened. It would also work with the US’ National Transportation Safety Board to research safety features at airports that have experienced similar tragedies.
Lee said that as the Jeju Air flight might have experienced landing gear issues ahead of the crash, he was worried about the 10 China Airlines Ltd (中華航空) Boeing 737-800 planes.
The TTSB urged the carrier intensify efforts to carry out daily maintenance work and regular checkups.
Meanwhile, South Korea yesterday ordered a “comprehensive inspection” of all Boeing 737-800 aircraft operated by the nation’s carriers.
US air safety officials and staff from the beleaguered aircraft maker Boeing Co arrived to join investigators probing the worst air disaster on South Korean soil, which officials initially blamed on a collision with birds.
The nation began seven days of mourning, with flags flying at half-mast and the acting president flying to the crash site for a memorial.
Acting South Korean President Choi Sang-mok, who has only been in office since Friday, said the government was making “every effort” to identify victims and support bereaved families.
Choi, who became acting president after his two predecessors were impeached, said a “thorough investigation into the cause of the accident” would be conducted.
He also said South Korea would conduct “an urgent safety inspection of the overall aircraft operation system” to prevent future aviation disasters.
Both black boxes from the plane — the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder — have been found.
“As for the comprehensive inspection, maintenance records of key systems such as engines and landing gear will be thoroughly reviewed for 101 aircraft operated by six airlines using the same model as the accident aircraft,” South Korean Deputy Minister for Civil Aviation Joo Jong-wan said. “This process will be carried out intensively starting today and continuing until January 3.”
Additional reporting by AFP
US-CHINA SUMMIT: MOFA welcomed US reassurance of no change in its Taiwan policy; Trump said he did not comment when Xi talked of opposing independence US President Donald Trump yesterday said he has not made a decision on whether to move forward with a major arms package for Taiwan after hearing concerns about it from Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平). Trump’s comments on Taiwan came as he flew back to Washington after wrapping up critical talks in which both leaders said important progress was made in stabilizing US-China relations even as deep differences persist between the world’s two biggest powers on Iran and Taiwan. “I will make a determination,” Trump said, adding: “I’ll be making decisions. But, you know, I think the last thing we need right
SECURITY: Taipei presses the US for arms supplies, saying the arms sales are not only a reflection of the US security commitment to Taiwan but also serve as a mutual deterrent against regional threats Taiwan is committed to preserving the cross-strait “status quo” and contributing to regional peace and stability, the Presidential Office said yesterday. “It is an undeniable fact that the Republic of China is a sovereign and independent democratic nation,” Presidential Office spokeswoman Karen Kuo (郭雅慧) reiterated, adding that Beijing has no right to claim sovereignty over Taiwan. The statements came after US President Donald Trump warned against Taiwanese independence. Trump wrapped up a state visit to Beijing on Friday, during which Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) had pressed him not to support Taiwan. Taiwan depends heavily on US security backing to deter China from carrying
The subsidiary of Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) in Kumamoto, Japan, turned a profit in the first quarter of this year, marking the first time the first fab of the unit has become profitable since mass production started at the end of 2024. According to the contract chipmaker’s financial statement released on Friday, Japan Advanced Semiconductor Manufacturing Inc (JASM), a joint venture running the fab in Kumamoto, posted NT$951 million (US$30.19 million) in profit in the January-to-March period, compared with a loss of NT$1.39 billion in the previous quarter, and a loss of NT$3.25 billion in the first quarter of
RESOLUTE BACKING: Two Republican senators are planning to introduce legislation that would impose immediate sanctions on China if it attempts to invade Taiwan US House of Representatives Speaker Mike Johnson on Sunday reaffirmed US congressional support for Taiwan, saying the US and “all freedom-loving people” have a stake in preventing China from seizing Taiwan by force. Johnson made the remarks in an interview with Fox News Sunday on US President Donald Trump’s summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) last week. In an interview that aired on Friday on Fox News, just as Trump wrapped up a high-stakes visit to China, he said he has yet to green-light a new US$14 billion arms package to Taiwan and that it “depends on China.” “It’s a very good
RSS