Airliners told to double-check passengers for safety reasons
Airliners told to double-check passengers for safety reasons
Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Air passengers who are annoyed at being asked to provide their
identity cards in random ticket checks should realize the process
is for their own good, airlines and the transportation minister
say.
The importance of ticket checking became clear following
Monday's Mandala Airlines plane crash in Medan, North Sumatra,
which killed 149 people.
The names of three ill-fated Mandala passengers were missing
from the passenger list, causing extra trauma to their bereaved
families and meaning insurers were not required to pay out any
compensation for their deaths.
The three had purchased their tickets from scalpers.
Minister of Transportation Hatta Radjasa said on Thursday the
government would issue a decree requiring air crews to conduct
double checks on passenger tickets before boarding.
"It may be annoying but it should be a must. This is to avoid
any chaos (like in the Mandala crash) from reoccurring," Hatta
told the House of Representatives Commission V on transportation
and telecommunication.
Hatta, who was asked many tough questions at the hearing, said
the checks would be made when passengers were checking in and
boarding.
Garuda spokesman Pudjobroto, meanwhile, said identity spot
checks were a standard safety procedure the national flag carrier
had to comply with. However, he did not believe complete double
checks of passengers would be feasible.
"Garuda conducts random checks for efficiency at the check-in
counters. We've made public this a policy for a long time, so it
will be the passengers' responsibility if they still insist on
using tickets without their proper names," Pudjobroto said on
Thursday.
If passengers were caught with incorrect tickets, Pudjobroto
said, they would be required to buy new ones.
"But if he or she manages to get into the plane, we take no
responsibility if something bad happens. We only take care of
those whose names are on our list," Pudjobroto said.
The check, he added, was also crucial to ensure the safety of
the passengers by stopping terrorists or hijackers from getting
on board.
However, double checks of every passenger would be difficult
because of the time constraints airlines were under. If
instituted they would only cause more delays, he said.
"But the message is clear: That passengers know the procedural
consequences if their names don't appear."
Merpati Indonesia corporate secretary Jaka Pujiyono said no
insurance companies would pay compensation to holders of scalped
tickets.
The logic, he said, was that the insurance was sold to the
person whose name was on the ticket. "So if it's not your name,
and something happens to you, it's not the insurance firm's
responsibility."
Jaka said Merpati often conducted full checks on all
passengers at certain times but would not elaborate for security
reasons.
"We don't want the passengers to know our schedule (of full
checks), so they can cheat us. But the message is that they
should always be prepared. That's also why passengers are always
told to check in an hour before departure. So if we make checks,
it won't cause any disruptions," Jaka said.
At the commission hearing, Hatta also said the ministry would
start carrying out special inspections and evaluations of all
Boeing 737-200 aircraft on Friday.
"Most local carriers operate this type of aircraft and they
have the highest accident rates. The evaluations will just be
ramp checks (spot checks at the airport) and we will not ground
all of the planes."