Taipei, July 14 (CNA) The Civil Aeronautics Administration (CAA) on Saturday announced rule changes that will require Taiwanese carriers traveling over oceans to report their position every 15 minutes under certain conditions -- a requirement triggered by the disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines flight in 2014.
The revised Aircraft Flight Operation Regulations stipulate that starting Nov. 8, all operations of aircraft with a takeoff mass of 45,500 kilograms flying oceanic routes will have to apply aircraft tracking on a 15-minute interval, compared to a 60-minute interval at present, the CAA said. The new rule will make it possible for airlines to track more closely the latitude, longitude and altitude of their aircraft, said Clark Lin (林俊良), director of CAA's Flight Standards Division.
Carriers will also have to make sure that the position of an aircraft can be determined at least once a minute when in distress, such as when there is smoke in the cabin or engine failure, Lin said. The amendment is in line with the Global Aircraft Tracking Initiatives adopted by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) in the wake of the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 on March 8, 2014 after it took off from Kuala Lumpur.
The ICAO has been tightening global aviation standards after the disaster, when the aircraft went missing within an hour after takeoff on its way to Beijing, Lin said. According to the ICAO, all airlines will be required to follow the new rule to prevent a similar episode from happening again. Another safety measure under the Aircraft Flight Operation Regulations that took effect on Jan. 1 requires aircraft to upgrade their safety operations.
Aircraft with a seating capacity greater than 19 and a takeoff mass of 27,000 kg that will be operating across 400 nautical miles or more of ocean, have to install an underwater locator beacon that can work automatically underwater, according to the new rules. The beacon, which is to be fixed on the main body of the aircraft, will complement a traditional flight recorder, which is often located at the tail of an aircraft, Lin said.
Should an aircraft break up in an accident, the beacon will increase the chances of locating the airplane, he said. But there is a grace period for airlines to complete the modification because they have to ask the original aircraft manufacturers to help them do it. China Airlines and EVA Airways, Taiwan's two major carriers, said they will follow all safety enhancements required by aviation authorities.
