MA-60 PLANE CRASH FUELS OTHER STORIES

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, May 19 (ANTARA) - The crash last Saturday of a China-made MA-60 airplane belonging to state-owned Marpati Nusantara Airlines in Kaimana Bay, West Papua, that killed 27 people attracted the sympathetic attention of ASEAN leaders.          The heads of state/government of the Association of South East Asian Nations who were holding a summit in Jakarta, before having a banquet hosted by President Susilo Yudhoyono, observed a moment of silence for the victims.          Without belittling the extent of the accident itself, people find that the crash has raised another issue, when an online-media carried a story alleging that the plane had been purchased, reportedly marked up, through the intervention of a special presidential spokesman, known by his initials as "JW".          Enriching the air accident's side story, as calls surface for investigation of the deals, China reportedly has threatened to cancel its commitment to finance Indonesia's 10,000 megawatt power crash program should Merpati be forced to cancel its purchase contract with China's Xian Aircraft industry.          China's fear of contract cancellation is just logical if insistence at home forced Merpati to do so for both security and economic reasons. After all, MA-60 planes are not covered with international reputed airworthiness certification.          In addition, the one which crashed in Papua was only recently purchased (last December), and the accident in Kaimana was the second to take place in Indonesia and the fifth one if similar accidents in other countries are taken into account.          Based on records, the ill-fated plane was supplied by China's Xian Aircraft on December 3, 2010.  Merpati is scheduled to receive two more MA-60s on May 19 and 20, 2011.          "We will accept the planes. There will be no cancellation. But in the future it will be adjusted to the company's business plan," the president director of Merpati Nusantara Airlines (MNA), Sardjono Jhony Tjitrokusumo, said.           A lawmaker on trade affair however insisted that the purchase of the plane should be investigated.          "The purchase of MA-60 which is carried out under a compromised mechanism should be investigated. China has threatened to cancel its financing  for Indonesian 10,000 MW crash power plants programs if Merpati cancels its contract," Ecky Awal Muharram of the House Commission VI on trade and state firms, said here Tuesday.          The lawmaker even argued that parties involved in the controversial purchase of MA-60 must be investigated. Merpati is a state-owned company whose funding came from the people's money. The purchase mechanism and system of the aircraft needed to be reviewed because it had the potential to disadvantage the state money and harm the safety of the people.          Moreover, the question over its purchase is arising while this type of aircraft has no certification from the Europe Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in the United States.  It only has certification from the Chinese aviation authority.          "We do not need FAA certificates because MA-60s are not used in the United States. FAA certificate is a standard requirement in the USA but it is not needed in Indonesia," Sardjono Jhony said.          MA-60 plane was purchased under a Sub Loan Agreement (SLA) funding system where the loan was given to the government but would be repaid by Merpati.          The agreement was signed by the government with the Chinese Exim Bank repayable in 15 years by Merpati.  "This means that the government is the underwriter of the loan," Ecky said.          He questioned the government's attitude towards the risk trend in MA-60 accidents which were categorically high in Indonesia and in other countries.  That's why the purchase mechanism and system of the aircraft needed to be reviewed because it had the potential to disadvantage the state money and harm the safety of the people.          Yet,  Merpati President Sardjono Jhony Tjitrokusumo said the company's MA-60 plane that crashed in Kaiman on May 7 had been airworthy. "I clarified that the plane was airworthy when it departed from Sorong," Jhony said.          He said the plane was in good condition and its crew members were fit to fly. "So, it is not the plane that is problematic. So far the plane has had no problem because the aircraft maintenance logbook was clear," he said.          In this case, Chief Economic Minister Hatta Rajasa called on the people not speculate.          "Don't make different speculations but look at its main problem," the coordinating minister for economic affairs. He said that the main problem was to investigate the real cause of the crash. "The problem is that the plane had crashed. And we have to investigate its causes. That's why we have to wait for the investigation results of the National Committee of Transportation Safety (KNKT)," he said.          An online media is reported to have a story about allegation of a special presidential staff who had been involved in the purchase of MA-60 plane, reportedly marked up. However this allegation was denied by the State Palace.          Special Presidential staff for information Heru Lelono said the report was not true. There was no presidential staff involved it. "There is no policy in the Palace giving a presidential staff an authority to take a decision on that matter (purchase of plane)," Heru said.          He said that since his appointment as a special presidential staff in 2004, he had never known a presidential staff by his initials "JW".  "It would be better for those who first disclosed this matter   to explain who 'JW" is," he said referring to the story of the online media.         Yet, if the report is true, the president will certainly take a firm action against him, he said.         "I hope that all sides would think and react professionally and rationally in commenting on the Merpati plane crash accident," he said.          What is important now is that the accident should be investigated by experts so that its causes could be revealed to prevent the repeat of such an accident, the presidential staff said.***3*** (T.A014/A/HAJM/17:52/A014) 10-05-2011 18:05:1