"Based on the foreign airlines permit for the winter period 2014-2015 for the Surabaya to Singapore route communicated to AirAsia via letter number AU/008/30/6/DRJU/DAU on October 24, 2014, AirAsia had proposed flights on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays (day code: 1,2,4, 6)," Djoko Murdjatmodjo, Indonesias acting director general of air transportation, remarked in a press conference here on Monday.
However, Djoko noted that AirAsia flight QZ8501 was operated on Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays (day code: 1,3,5,7).
"Based on our identification, Indonesia AirAsia has violated flight path rules because the airline did not have a license to fly the Surabaya to Singapore route on Sundays. Therefore, the ministry has suspended Indonesia AirAsia flights on the Surabaya-to-Singapore route," he emphasized.
Djoko confirmed that AirAsia had submitted a request to operate on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.
"We had agreed to AirAsias request," he said.
He explained that AirAsia should submit an official schedule, which was given to the origin and destination airports, and should be immediately adjusted to the slot accordingly.
If the days are not suitable, then the airline must apply for a revision regarding its operations with the directorate general of air transportation, he added.
"But, until now, the revised petition has yet to be submitted to us. So, the schedule was not considered a problem," he stated.
During the summer period, Djoko admitted that AirAsia had followed a daily schedule by operating on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays on the Surabaya-Singapore route
"Has the revised schedule for the winter period been reported to Singapore? AirAsia should also be questioned about it," he noted.
Regarding the flight slots, Djoko clarified that Indonesia and Singapore had already provided seven days for AirAsia through the information given by the Indonesian Slot Coordinator (IDSC) for domestic slots and Garuda Indonesia for international slots.
However, he explained that Indonesia AirAsia had permission to fly the Surabaya-Singapore route on four days a week, and the provision was determined based on the request submitted by the airline.
"Before applying for the permit, the airline must have slot permission, and it must fit between the departure and arrival times. Then, the license is issued. This must be agreed by both parties," he remarked.
Djoko explained that the conveyance rights are stipulated in the agreement of bilateral relations, and Singapore Air did not require the authorization of the Indonesian civil aviation authorities.
Regarding surveillance of airport authorities on the operator, Djoko will conduct an audit of the related parties involved in the negligence.
"We will investigate the negligence and check the role of the airport authority," he said.
Earlier, a Japanese ship and helicopter that joined the Indonesian search and rescue operations for the AirAsia QZ8501 flight will move to the search area on Tuesday.
The Japanese Embassy stated in a press statement here on Monday that the helicopter belonging to the Japanese Self Defense Forces (JSDF) will depart from Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan, to the JSDF ship already deployed in the waters of Karimata Strait.
The search and rescue operations have entered the ninth day on Monday. On Sunday, the rescuers found four dead victims of the ill-fated AirAsia flight QZ8501.
As of Sunday evening, the number of bodies already retrieved from the crash site had reached 34. All of them have been flown to Surabaya, East Java, for the identification process by the Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team.
(Uu.A063/INE/KR-BSR/A014)
Editor: Priyambodo RH
Copyright © ANTARA 2015
