An international pilots group said Friday that the crash of an Airbus jet at the international airport in Honduras demonstrated the urgent need for longer safety strips at the end of runways to prevent routine overruns from turning into tragedies.
Five people died and 65 were injured on May 30 when the A320 belonging to Grupo Taca skidded off the end of the runway at Toncontin International Airport.
The cause of the accident is still being investigated, but the London-based International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Associations said it «deplores the fact that it remains possible for an airport serving a major city to be noncompliant with internationally agreed minimum standards for runway end safety areas.
I share the feeling additional free space of the end of runways could have limited damage / fatalities in recent years. Southwest, Air France, Taca, TAM come to mind. Not digging / building things at the end of runways for a few hundreds meters more doesn't sound like a bad idea.
