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Govt calls for checks on all Boeing MAX 8 aircraft after Lion Air crash
The government has ordered that all Boeing 737 MAX 8 in operation at Indonesian carriers be checked following Monday's crash of Lion Air flight JT610, which used the same type of aircraft.
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Boeing 737 Max 8 Lion Air (Courtesy of Lion Air/-)
T
he government has ordered that all Boeing 737 MAX 8 flown by Indonesian carriers be checked following Monday's crash of Lion Air flight JT610, which used the same type of aircraft.
The Transportation Ministry has sent a letter to Lion Air and flag carrier Garuda Indonesia – the two Indonesian airlines that operate the MAX 8 – to carry out a "special" airworthiness test on their fleet of Boeing 737 MAX 8.
Lion Air operates 11 Boeing 737 MAX 8, while Garuda Indonesia operates one MAX 8 aircraft.
“We will conclude the [test] and provide the results to the KNKT as their basis for determining the cause of the incident,” said Transportation Minister’s Budi Karya Sumadi on Tuesday, referring to the National Transportation Safety Committee.
In a letter dated Oct. 29, the ministry's airworthiness and aircraft operations director Capt. Avirianto requested the directors of PT Lion Mentari Airlines, which operates Lion Air, and PT Garuda Indonesia to run several checks on the aircraft.
Avirianto requested them to check the airlines' MAX 8 fleet for any signs of repeated problems in flight logs, troubleshooting procedures, conformity between these procedures and airworthiness standards, and adequate onboard equipment and facilities to implement troubleshooting procedures.
The results are to be submitted to the Transportation Ministry's airworthiness and civil aviation directorates for review.
Earlier, Budi said Lion Air flight JT610, which served the Jakarta-Pangkal Pinang route, had been certified airworthy and had a valid airworthiness certificate and aircraft registration on the day of the accident.
The minister also said that airlines were required to conduct processes to determine the aircraft's fitness for flight, such as periodic maintenance, during the documents' validity periods.
"During that period, there were indeed measures that the [aircraft's] operators must carry out on the airworthiness of each aircraft in reference to procedures set by the civil aviation directorate general," he said.
The government also planned to send an inspection team to conduct a special audit on PT Lion Mentari Airlines and Batam Aero Technic maintenance company.
