Indonesian plane went from no flights to 132 in less than a month
The aging plane flew during a heavy storm in a country with a long history of flight disasters. It had also been out of service for nine months. According to Indonesia’s Ministry of Transportation, Sriwijaya Air Flight 182, which plunged into the Java Sea on Saturday afternoon, killing all 62 passengers and crew members on board, had been in a hangar for most of last year after the coronavirus pandemic wiped out much of commercial flight. The effect such a hiatus may have had on the 26-year-old Boeing 737-500 is still unclear, but experts have warned that the continuing collapse of air travel could pose potential safety risks from mothballed planes. “There’s a major problem starting to raise its head in terms of restoring these aircraft because while out of service for nine or 10 months, they need to be kept operating, otherwise they deteriorate,” said Hugh Ritchie, CE of Aviation Analysts International, an Australian air safety consulting firm. The period of dormancy creates extra burdens for inspections and maintenance to repair parts that may have deteriorated. In addition, pilots who may not have been flying actively during the downturn need time to get back up to speed, Ritchie said. “All of these aircraft have to be brought slowly back into service,” he added. “The same can be said about pilots.” Like most commercial airlines, Sriwijaya Air was forced to scale back operations in the pandemic. At one point it was down to operating just five of its 18 planes. The Boeing 737-500 that crashed was put in a hangar on March 23 and did not operate again until the end of the year, according to the Ministry of Transportation.<br/>
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Indonesian plane went from no flights to 132 in less than a month
The aging plane flew during a heavy storm in a country with a long history of flight disasters. It had also been out of service for nine months. According to Indonesia’s Ministry of Transportation, Sriwijaya Air Flight 182, which plunged into the Java Sea on Saturday afternoon, killing all 62 passengers and crew members on board, had been in a hangar for most of last year after the coronavirus pandemic wiped out much of commercial flight. The effect such a hiatus may have had on the 26-year-old Boeing 737-500 is still unclear, but experts have warned that the continuing collapse of air travel could pose potential safety risks from mothballed planes. “There’s a major problem starting to raise its head in terms of restoring these aircraft because while out of service for nine or 10 months, they need to be kept operating, otherwise they deteriorate,” said Hugh Ritchie, CE of Aviation Analysts International, an Australian air safety consulting firm. The period of dormancy creates extra burdens for inspections and maintenance to repair parts that may have deteriorated. In addition, pilots who may not have been flying actively during the downturn need time to get back up to speed, Ritchie said. “All of these aircraft have to be brought slowly back into service,” he added. “The same can be said about pilots.” Like most commercial airlines, Sriwijaya Air was forced to scale back operations in the pandemic. At one point it was down to operating just five of its 18 planes. The Boeing 737-500 that crashed was put in a hangar on March 23 and did not operate again until the end of the year, according to the Ministry of Transportation.<br/>
