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Jakarta. Indonesian airlines have made improvements in safety but still have a long way to go to rebuild their reputation, the International Air Transport Association said on Wednesday.

“There have been improvements in the last two years but much more has to be done to improve safety and to improve the reputation of Indonesia, which has been damaged by the safety issue,” IATA director general Giovanni Bisignani told reporters in Jakarta.

“This year so far, we have had three accidents, none fatal. It is still a big number ... Indonesia is still at the top of the list” for risks, he added.

He urged the government to make the IATA Operational Safety Audit (IOSA) —the highest safety standards in the world — a mandatory requirement for the nation’s airlines.

“It is a good way to attract more tourists ... It will send a strong signal to the world that Indonesian aviation safety is moving in the right direction,” Bisignani said.

At the moment, only two Indonesian airlines — Garuda and Mandala — are IATA members, he said.

One of Asia’s most successful airlines through the global economic downturn, national carrier Garuda has been expanding its routes and buying planes ahead of a planned initial public offering later this year.

It recently reopened flights to Europe for the first time since late 2004, after European Union regulators said it had resolved safety issues.

Brussels banned all Indonesian planes from EU airspace in 2007 after a series of crashes and incidents exposed poor safety standards across the Southeast Asian country’s aviation industry.


Agence France-Presse