China to ground MA-60s
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The manufacturer of China’s MA-60 aircraft has asked authorities for permission to ground the aircraft, pending an investigation into recent safety incidents.
According to a Xinhua report, Xi’an Aircraft Industry Co has applied to the Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) to suspend operations of the MA-60 turboprops across the country, after two incidents involving the aircraft in China in recent weeks.
On 4 February 2014, the landing gear of an MA-60 collapsed after a Joy Air flight landed at Zhengzhou Airport. Then earlier this week, an MA-60 operated by Okay Airways was forced to circle for more than two hours after a problem was found with its landing gear. It eventually landed safely at Shenyang Airport.
These incidents are the first reported in China, but the MA-60 has been involved in multiple safety incidents in recent years, many of which involved the landing gear.
In January 2009, an MA-60 operated by Zest Airways in the Philippines veered sharply after landing at Caticlan Airport and crashed into a concrete barrier. Then in 2011 an MA-60 operated by Bolivia’s TAM was forced to land without its front landing year fully deployed, after the mechanism failed.
In 2013 Myanma Airways flight also swerved off the runway after touching down at Kawthaung – one of three separate incidents involving the MA-60 in the space of two months last year, including two in Myanmar and one in Indonesia.
But the most serious incident involving the MA-60 occurred in 2011, when a Merpati flight crashed into the sea off the coast of West Papua, killing all 27 people onboard. Pilot error was blamed for the incident.
These incidents have led to the MA-60 being temporarily suspended in Indonesia and Myanmar. And following the recent incidents in China, Xi’an has now decided to remove all aircraft from service to check the landing gear. It will also send teams to check MA-60s operated by its overseas clients, the company said.
There are currently approximately 80 MA-60s operating in the world, all with airlines in Asia, Africa and Latin America.
Pic caption: An MA-60 operated by Lao Airlines (photo by nitinut380)
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