FAA to hold an aircraft safety seminar in Taipei
01 Oct 2007
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the US Department of Transportation will hold an aircraft maintenance safety seminar in Taipei on 4 and 5 October.
About 120 technicians and executives from Taiwan and abroad will attend. This is the first international meeting being held by the FAA in Taiwan.
The seminar will be similar to those the FAA has held previously in Japan and China to enhance aviation safety by exchanging information on aircraft repair and maintenance techniques. Thai Airways and Korean Airlines will also send technicians to the seminar.
Taiwan became the focus of world attention when a Boeing 737-800 jet of its China Airlines burst into flames shortly after landing at Naha Airport in Okinawa, Japan, on 20 August. The 157 passengers and eight crew aboard the jet managed to escape only seconds before the explosion.
Japanese investigators said a loose bolt on the right wing slat pierced the fuel tank, causing a fuel leak which led to the fire. Similar bolt problems have been found on four other Boeing 737s.
Before the accident, the FAA had urged visual checks for loose bolts on all Boeing 737 jets after 23 cases in which bolts on the wing slats of Boeing 737 series were reported to have come loose.
