Plane inquiry
may take 2 weeks

The FAA says the jet's path may
have been in an acceptable range

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By Diana Leone
dleone@starbulletin.com

A Federal Aviation Administration investigation of whether a China Airlines flight passed too close to high-rise buildings early Saturday will probably take two weeks, a spokesman said yesterday.

"I can't speak (about) the investigation while it's ongoing, but it seems from initial reports that the plane may have been off somewhat, but within (acceptable) boundaries," said Mike Fergus, an FAA regional public affairs spokesman.

But the post-dawn incident with China Airlines Flight 017 is "a potential safety issue, and safety issues do not get stuck on a back burner," he said.

The Boeing 747 had been cleared for a visual landing, so it was not being closely tracked by air-traffic controllers at the time, Fergus said.

However, its exact path will be mapped using automatic recording tapes and then assessed as to whether it was within standards, he said.

Those exact standards will vary according to wind and weather conditions and other factors, he said.

There was no reason for any homeland security measures to be invoked regarding the incident "because we knew who they were and where they were going and what they were doing," Fergus said.

The plane apparently landed at Honolulu Airport on schedule, he said.

People in the Century Center condominiums on Kalakaua Avenue were among the "series of John Q Citizen calls that came in to the FAA and alerted us to this," Fergus said. "The FAA conducts investigations on all aircraft incidents or accidents."

Should it be determined that the plane's flight path was a safety concern, the airline faces civil penalty fines, Fergus said.

China Airlines officials could not be reached for comment yesterday.

A staffer at U.S. Sen. Dan Inouye's office confirmed that it has asked the FAA to report its findings.

Gov. Linda Lingle also is concerned about the incident and will review a copy of the FAA report when it is ready, said her spokesman, Russell Pang.

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Federal Aviation Administration