Crash exposes shady safety record of regional airlines

Blind development

“To attract domestic and international investment and boost the local econom, provincial governments have been eager to establish their own regional airlines and airports,” said Xing Yu, planning director ofGlobal Flying magazine.

In some cases, their poor plans result in yearly losses in the millions, he said.

Regional airlines provide passenger air service to secondary cities that lack sufficient demand to attract mainline service. They survive as feeder airlines, contracting with a major airline to deliver passengers to the major hubs from surrounding cities. A few, like Henan Airlines, operates under their own brand.

As a central province, Henan has long had a well-developed ground traffic network. To boost air traffic and its image, the Henan government cooperated with Shenzhen Airlines to establish a regional airline in 2007.

Sophisticated administrative tactics were used to get security to turn a blind eye to problems in operation and regional aircraft safety rules, Xing said.

In Xing’s opinion, the connection between Henan Airlines and Henan Province is obvious – the name alone says everything when taken in the context of the domestic airline indury. The government’s speedy denial of having a hand in administration and investment was even more suspicious. “The public hadn’t even accused the local government of being responsible. Isn’t it strange that they weso eager to distance themselves from the airline?” Xing said.

Regional burdens

Henan Airlines is hardly an isolated case.

One need look no further than Beijing’s Capital Airlines, established this May, for a more loal example. Similar dealings have supported the creation of Tianjin Airlines, Chengdu Airlines, Kunming Airlines and Tibet Airlines, as well as another 10 regional airlines founded last year.

But the Yichun crash is more complicated than one province’s blind ambition. The 104-seat E-190 jet that crashed in Yichun was designed only for short-range regional flights between second-tier cities.

Wang Ruyan, a 25-year-old Beijing resident, said the crash has reinforced her determination to fly on large aircrafts only, even if the ticket prices are higher. “I alwys worry about safety issues when flying on small planes, and this accident has only compounded my worries,” she said.While it is true that the small aircraft may not have been designed for such long hauls, Li Xiaojin, a professor with the Civil Aviation University of China, said the airport may be more to blame.

“Poor night flight capabilities at Lindu airport are a more obvious cause. The pilots have also been found to have made sevral mistakes,” Li said. China is one of the world’s largest aircraft consumer markets. An industry report conducted by Aviation Industry Corporation of China (AVIC) in 2009 found that the country needed to increase itsregional fleet by 874 jets by 2028.

Embraer, the Brazilian aerospace conglomerate that makes the E-190, has also painted a rosy picture of the China market in the next 20 years. An Embraer marketing report from its Chinese official website said that by 2028, China will have a 1,000-strong fleet of short-distance turbine jets with seating capacities ranging from 30 to 120.

Two airlines on the mainland have been Embraer’s top clients: Hena Airlines, with its five E-190 jets, and Tianjin Airlines, with a 25-strong fleet. Tianjin Airlines said it plans to expand its fleet to include 60 E-190 jets by the end of 2013.

Tuesday’s crash could kill Embraer’s exnsion plans.

Luo Jie, director of public relations at Embraer, was quick to deflect blame away from the E-190 plane during a Tuesday interview.

In mature aviation markets, such as the US and Europe, regional airlines usually account for 30 and 40 percent of the total civil aviation market, Luo said. In China, regional airlines account for just 5 percent.

If there is a silver lining to the crash, Li said it is the chance for domestic jetmakers to expand in the regional market. “It might be an opportunity to promote domestically-made regional aircrafts, since they have gone many years without any major accidents,” he saidOne regional aircraft, the Modern Ark 60 (MA-60), has been produced in Xi’an, Shaanxi Province since 2000.“The disaster will depress regional airlines’ business for a while, but the long-term development will probably go unaffected,” he saiThe accident may also push regional airline companies to strengthen their safety management, which would benefit the aviation industry as a whole.