Aviation safety has patchy record in Southeast Asian militaries (Opinion)
The remains of the C-130H after the deadly accident in Jolo. (Photo: PNP)
Asia-Pacific air safety is under the spotlight after two deadly crashes of military aircraft in the Philippines in the past month.
Two recent fatal accidents in the Philippines have shone a spotlight on the safety culture in Southeast Asian air forces. It is the role of air accident investigators to find causes or to apportion blame, but an ongoing spate of incidents suggests safety, training and maintenance processes are inadequate.
Indeed, the regularity of air crashes in Southeast Asia is reaching alarming levels, and debate is necessary to understand contributing causes. Certainly, one factor must be the age of aircraft fleets, as air forces eke out as much life as possible from airframes and engines.
However, the Geobukseon contends that the
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