Letters: Lifting the EU flight ban

The EU's decision to remove four Indonesian airlines from its flight ban is certainly good news. However, I was concerned about the following statement made by the Indonesian transportation minister: "It will restore the public's trust toward national airlines."

In fact, the opposite is true! If only four out of some 50 airlines in Indonesia get the thumbs up from the EU, then what are the other airlines doing? Are they not able to raise their safety standards, are they ignoring the rules set out by the EU?

Even if the EU considers removing "at least two more airlines" from its black list, the majority of airlines operating in Indonesia are still deemed unsafe.

For the time being, the four airlines removed from the list certainly have a competitive advantage. As opposed to airlines just advertising a catchy slogan like "Trust us to fly", I will only trust the ones that are certified.

At any rate, it is time for the Indonesian civil aviation authorities to step up their efforts in order to restore "public trust" based on the certification of all airlines operating here. If certain airlines cannot fulfill the certification standards in the very near future, then their licenses to fly should be revoked!

This would be help restore public trust. It is a serious matter and should not be taken lightly. Indonesia, step up your game!

Eckart Schumacher
Jakarta