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Transportation minister prepares additional airport safety measures
Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said on Thursday that the ministry would prepare additional airport safety measures in wake of the intoxicated former Citilink pilot case.
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Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi greets bus passengers at Purbaya bus terminal in Sidoarjo, East Java, on Dec. 30. The minister inspected the readiness of bus operators given the increasing number of passengers during the New Year holiday. (Antara/Umarul Faruq)
Budi said, he had instructed the ministry’s director general for air transportation Suprasetyo, as well as the state airport authority to introduce new procedures to monitor safety concerns. Although, no new regulations would need to be implemented, the minister added.
“Among others, is the requirement to monitor via CCTV and to set preventive measures if there are officials or air crew members behaving suspiciously when they pass [security checks],” he said recently.
He stressed that the enforcement of standard operating procedures (SOP) was the obligation of each airline.
Regarding the Citilink case, a viral video on the internet showed pilot Capt. Tekad Purna visibly drunk, walking through the x-ray scanner unsteadily. The airport’s security officers were seen aiding him to pass and helped him gather his belongings.
Meanwhile, Suprasetyo said those officers had warned the station manager, yet the manager did not try to prevent Tekad from piloting his scheduled flight. The pilot was also cited to have skipped the required briefing before the flight. “Are we paying attention to how [Indonesian airports] are being managed?” he said. (bbn)
