Interesting reading.
INDONESIA WARNS: WE CAN BAN EU PLANES
JAKARTA - After the decision by the European Union to ban Indonesia's airlines from flying to Europe after a series of fatal crashes, Jakarta has agreed to a number of new safety initiatives.
But it is still smarting over the EU ban.
Indonesian transport minister Jusman Djamal said Indonesia had the option of restricting access to its airspace for EU planes, or of advising its citizens not to fly with European airlines.
"Indonesia can do the same thing, we can say Indonesian airspace is limited for EU planes," Djamal told the Jakarta Post.
Earlier, Indonesia and ICAO agreed a pact under which Indonesia will restructure the Directorate General of Civil Aviation.
It will additionally introduce the required legal framework for it to meet international safety obligations, commit the required human and financial resources and correct deficiencies identified by ICAO's Universal Safety Oversight Audit Programme.
ICAO said Indonesian government authorities have committed the local air transport industry to foster transparency and the sharing of safety-related data to support the safety management process, under guidelines established by ICAO.
In a linked agreement, IATA has expanded its Partnership for Safety (PfS) programme to include Indonesia.
The aim is to raise airline operating standards and improve safety in Indonesia.
The announcement came at a special meeting hosted by the Indonesian Ministry of Transport in Bali to engage key international stakeholders in Indonesia's efforts to improve aviation safety.
'The tragedies in Indonesia earlier this year remind us that much work needs to be done,' said Giovanni Bisignani, IATA's director general and CEO.
The PfS programme assists airlines to prepare for the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA).
IOSA is the first global standard for airline operational safety auditing, and assesses the operational management and control systems of an airline.
IOSA became a condition for IATA membership in 2006.
"Our goal is to raise the bar on safety with a global target of a 25% improvement by 2008," said Bisignani.