And the latest updated and more comprehensive report,stating the
reasons for nonprosecution , in :
http://straitstimes.asia1.com.sg/pri...126136,00.html
Taiwan will not prosecute SQ 006 pilots
Prosecutor says they are excellent pilots who had expressed their sympathies to victims' families through newspaper ads
By Lawrence Chung
15 June 2002
STRAITS TIMES TAIWAN BUREAU
TAIWAN'S judicial authorities yesterday decided not to prosecute the three pilots of SQ006, although finding them in part negligent in the crash that killed 83 people two years ago.
Only one pilot is completely in the clear - First Officer Ng Kheng Leng - who was not at the controls on the night of the crash.
As for Captain Foong Chee Kong and First Officer Latiff Cyrano, they were found negligent for turning into the wrong runway, but jailing them was not the right solution, said the authorities.
Instead, prosecution against them has been suspended for three years, said Mr Chiang Kuei-chang, chief of the review department of the Taoyuan Prosecutors' Office.
If they commit any crimes in Taiwanese jurisdiction in that time, the authorities can still prosecute them.
Also, the two of them will be banned from flying civilian jetliners to Taiwan for a year, said Mr Chiang.
'The pilot and co-pilot must take responsibility for mistakenly entering the wrong runway,' he said.
But prosecution was suspended because they were excellent pilots with above average flying skills, and had expressed their sympathies to the victims' families in newspaper advertisements in three local newspapers last Friday. And they had offered to perform community service in Singapore.
Also, the incident occurred on a stormy night with low visibility. The Los Angeles-bound Boeing 747-400, carrying 179 people, tried to take off on a closed runway from Taiwan's Chiang Kai-shek International Airport during a typhoon on Oct 31, 2000.
Investigations into possible professional negligence on the part of the pilots started after Taiwan's Aviation Safety Council blamed the crash on the pilots and bad weather in its final report on April 26.
Singapore's Ministry of Transport disputed the conclusions, citing a combination of factors, including deficiencies at Taiwan's airport.
No action will be taken against the airport or air- traffic controllers, because deficiencies at the airport were due to budget constraints and were beyond their control, said Prosecutor Chiang Yuan-chen.
The decision not to prosecute the pilots was welcomed by aviation officials and families of the victims.
Mr Abram Huang, deputy director of Taiwan's Civil Aeronautics Administration, found the decision 'nicely made' as 'it takes into account the views of all parties'.
Mr Hsu Chao-peng, whose brother and sister-in-law were killed in the crash, said: 'After all, the pilots did not want to kill anyone. It's also their lives they were risking, and prosecuting them would not be appropriate.'
Singapore Airlines and the Air Line Pilots Association Singapore (Alpa-S) also welcomed the move not to prosecute the pilots of SQ 006.
An Alpa-S spokesman said the association was relieved and encouraged especially as the crew involved had, at all times, cooperated fully with the authorities.
A spokesman for MOT said 'both sides should put the issue behind us and move on'.
Cheers