'Unsafe' airlines grounded - Indonesia

[iceni]

The Australian Newspaper

INDONESIA has grounded five airlines and given them three months to improve safety standards or face a ban.

A safety audit found airlines Helizona, SMAC, Asco Nusa Air, Tri-MG Intra Asia Airlines and Dirgantara Air Service failed to meet minimum standards in all safety categories, transport ministry spokesman Bambang Ervan said.

The airlines have been moved into the transport ministry's bottom safety ranking and have had their Air Operator's Certificates (AOC) suspended, Mr Ervan said.

"They can't fly because their certificates have been frozen. If after three months they don't take any action, their AOCs will be revoked," he said.

The transport ministry in June revoked the AOC of Adam Air after the troubled budget carrier failed to meet a three-month deadline to improve its safety standards.

Indonesia, which relies on air routes to link its thousands of islands, has one of the world's worst air safety records.

[PK-KAR]

A safety audit found airlines Helizona, SMAC, Asco Nusa Air, Tri-MG Intra Asia Airlines and Dirgantara Air Service failed to meet minimum standards in all safety categories, transport ministry spokesman Bambang Ervan said.
Helizona, SMAC and Asco Nusa Air? Doesn't surprise me. SMAC has been declining and has resorted to wet leasing aircraft. TriMG Asia is a cargo operator, and they've been stagnant for a while. Dirgantara Air Service has had rumours of safety breaches in the past, and a few crashes. They've been in decline and on the verge of bankruptcy for the past year, thanks to what was reported to be a huge markup on the ATR42 leases... since they returned their ATR42 leases... they haven't been able to pick up... And I'm not sure if Helizona is flying at all... Asco... oh boy... don't get me started.

Helizona, SMAC, ASCO are Part 135 operators, TriMG is 121 supplemental carrier, DAS have ceased 121 ops, and their 135 ops were declining anyways.

No mainline 121 operators are in the Cat3 rating...

PK-KAR

[gbour]

That was mere headline grabbing, making the authorities look active and good.:ugh: And all those scary Indonesian carriers that we actually use - have to - got away again. I wish pprune could give us the kind of blacklist we need - but I also understand why I am asking too much. (Still: whistleblows welcome...!)

[PK-KAR]

Well, Adam Air was on the blacklist, but they're dead now, so we need to find at least one to put on it...
Well, let's look at the current golden boot award winner and runner up for Indonesia... Lion and Batavia perhaps? Well, it's all improving over here, but those two, I dunno how the heck they got Cat 1 safety rating... They do look good on paper and documents, but the reality is somewhat less... whereas some Cat2 operators don't look as good on paper and documents but the field is somewhat safer than those two... I guess I'm just splitting hairs here...

[anartificialhorizon]

I would beg to differ on Lion.

They don't look half bad, have a good fleet (now) and seem to be fairly well run.

Nothing to report lately either.....

[PK-KAR]

They've banged all but 2 of their most recent 739ERs.
This year alone we've had engine panels detaching itself mid flight, and another engine panel somehow got sucked into the engine causing a "spectacular show" last month. (Both MDs)

Also last month a 734 had it's flap fairing dislodged and they continued the take off and route. I Witness MetroTV (http://iwitness.metrotvnews.com/play.php?vid=359)
Crew still has no roster, everyone gets an SMS everynight to inform them what they'll do the next day. Crew overrunning their annual hour limits isn't news still.

A few months ago, one lost cabin pressure decided to divert, and flight crew was bollocked by the management for "revealing too much info to the pax"... The same also happened on a case a few days later of smoke in the cabin. And one was preparing to ditch into Java sea... though they made it to Surabaya....

I won't put them as a Cat3 show, but a Cat1?????