ISRAEL: Minister says several malfunctions found at Israel's international airport

Record ID: 396954

  • Title: ISRAEL: Minister says several malfunctions found at Israel's international airport
  • Date: 17th August 2007
  • Summary: BEN GURION AIRPORT, ISRAEL (FILE) (REUTERS) PASSENGERS AT TERMINAL AIRCRAFT TAKING OFF
  • Embargoed: 1st September 2007 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Israel
  • Country: Israel
  • Topics: Transport
  • Reuters ID: LVA8UB88JP295IGDL1PRZ9EN30ME
  • Story Text: Israeli Minister of Transportation Shaul Mofaz says an inquiry committee found Israel's international airport's aviation safety to be far from global standards, just days after the near collision of two aircraft over the airport. An airport official confirms safety problems but insists airport is safe.
    Israeli Minister of Transportation Shaul Mofaz said Israel's Ben Gurion international airport is far from international standards in safety, equipment and infrastructure.
    "We, from the point of view of aviation safety in the state of Israel, are in a severe, I would even say very severe, state. A series of urgent steps is needed," Mofaz said at a news conference held in Tel Aviv, where a special inquiry committee that examined the airport's function presented its conclusions.
    Mofaz ordered the establishment of the special committee following a series of incidents that could easily lead to disastrous accidents in the sky over Israel.
    In one of the latest incidents, a Turkish Airlines plane taking off from Ben Gurion airport nearly collided with an Israeli El Al plane trying to land. The clash was prevented thanks to the air traffic controller who identified the dangerous situation and urgently ordered the Turkish Airline pilot to avoid changing his altitude.
    According to the committee's report, the most pressing issue facing the airport is that of the implementation of new technology.
    Israel is one of the only countries in the world where pilots cannot enjoy an automatic system to help them land safely.
    The report also identifies an insufficient infrastructure at Ben Gurion, where only two runways are operating regularly, along with a lack of suitable legislation to regularise areas of authority between civil and military aviation.
    "First of all we must reach a reality of flight safety on international standards. There are international standards and the state of Israel is not there," Mofaz told reporters in Tel Aviv.
    "It's not in the range of the international standards when it comes to legislation, to technology and to infrastructures. And on this issue we need to make a very significant step in order to aline ourselves with the international standards," Mofaz said.
    According to Arik Gilad, Deputy Director General of Israel's Airport Authority, another problem endangering sky traffic at Ben Gurion is the presence of pirate radio stations operating in the area and disturbing communication between airport's control tower and pilots.
    "Pirate radio causes a situation of disturbances to conversations between air traffic controllers and pilots. These disturbances cause a dangerous situation because they block the air traffic controllers' ability to safely direct and give orders to pilots in real time. The only mean to overcome this thing is with enforcement and deterrence. Who ever is working today in pirate radio is probably not afraid," Gilad told Reuters at his airport office.
    But despite the severe conclusions of the report, Gilad insists that there is no immediate cause for panic amongst air travellers.
    "We must make the distinction: We don't think that Ben Gurion airport is dangerous, period. And I want this to go in. Ben Gurion airport is not dangerous," he said.
    Ends.
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