Lion Air crash renews concerns about Indonesia airlines
The deadly crash of a Lion Air jet in the Java Sea has renewed questions about the safety of Indonesian airlines soon after U.S. and European regulators removed prohibitions against them.
A growing middle class and affordable fares have led to a boom in air travel in Asia, putting pressure on airlines, government overseers and infrastructure to keep up.
The surge has been particularly keen at Asia’s budget airlines such as Lion Air, whose Flight 610 disappeared into the sea shortly after takeoff from Jakarta. The Boeing 737 Max 8 carried 189 people and was bound for Pangkal Pinang on a smaller island in the Indonesian archipelago.
Data pinged from the plane showed erratic speed, altitude and direction in the minutes after takeoff. Safety experts cautioned, however, that the data must be checked for accuracy against the plane’s so-called black boxes, if they are recovered.