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Regional carrier LIAT says it has received queries  about its ATR aircraft in the aftermath of the crash of a similar plane in Taiwan, which killed 40 of the 58 persons on board.

Taiwanese airline TransAsia’s FlightGE235, anhe Avions de Transport Regional (ATR) aircraft, crashed into a river in Taiwan’s capital, Taipei last Wednesday.

Officials are probing why both plane engines were off during the crash and the airline says it is cancelling 90 flights so that its pilots can attend training, the BBC has reported.

LIAT, which changed the majority of its fleet to ATR aircraft recently, said in a statement that as one of the operators of the ATR aircraft in the Caribbean it has received queries from different quarters about the ATR aircraft.

The airline said that the European Aviation Safety Authority (EASA) is the multi-national safety and airworthiness oversight body and the regulator of the manufacturer, ATR.

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“Both parties, having safety as their paramount concern, will assess the need for any directives to be issued for the world-wide fleet, if necessary. To date, EASA has not issued any such directive,” LIAT said in a statement.

“In addition to the operators in the Caribbean, many airlines around the world operate ATR aircraft with a combined total of more than 5000 flights per day.

“For 58 years, the safety of our passengers and crew has always been paramount in our plans and this continues to be our highest priority,” LIAT said.

“LIAT and its own regulator the Eastern Caribbean Civil Aviation Authority (ECCAA) are guided by any such directive and LIAT would ensure our immediate compliance in the event of any directive being issued.”

LIAT also expressed “deepest sympathy to the families, friends and all those who were affected by the accident”.

3 replies on “LIAT reassures public as ATR crash kills 40 in Taiwan”

  1. Dr. Dexter Lewis says:

    This is not the first, but the second ATR to crash in Taiwan in just a couple of months.
    I am also curious about how the decision was made by LIAT’s board, (headed by the man who claims to make “master strokes”) to buy this plane? And, with LIAT constantly claiming to be broke, are they keeping up with training their pilots etc?

  2. I checked out the link to see the accident record for ATR and I am appalled. This makes me wonder if LIAT management/board knew about this before they decided to use the ATR.

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