CHINESE authorities are investigating the qualifications of the nation's commercial pilots after revelations that more than 200 of them had falsified their resumes. The probe comes after 42 people died on August 24 when a Brazilian-made regional jet flown by Henan Airlines crashed at a small airport in northeastern China's Heilongjiang province. Fifty-four passengers and crew survived the crash, in which the plane missed the runway, sparking speculation that pilot error was to blame. The investigation was launched by the Civil Aviation Administration of China, the country's aviation regulator, the central government's news website said. The resumes of more than 200 Chinese commercial pilots were found to have been falsified, the report said, with some of them embellishing their flight histories. At least half of the pilots in question worked for Shenzhen Airlines, which owns Henan Airlines, the government report said. Investigators were looking into the possibility of pilot error in the Henan Airlines crash, it added. The crash was China's first major air disaster in nearly six years. Authorities have already ordered safety checks of the country's fast-growing civil aviation fleet of 1300 planes in the wake of the disaster. Last week, the aviation administration said it was looking for crash clues related to the plane's manufacturer, operator, crew, maintenance record, and with air traffic management and the airport authorities. Authorities in central Henan province have also ordered the airline to change its name to prevent the crash from tarnishing the province's image. The company had previously been known as Kunpeng Airlines. The accident occurred after the plane missed the runway and crashed into a field next to the airport, cracking the cabin and triggering an explosion and subsequent fire, state media reported earlier, citing an initial probe.

A CONTROVERSIAL airline chief has been accused of endangering passengers' safety after calling for co-pilots to be replaced with flight attendants. Michael O’Leary, head of budget airline Ryanair, suggested that money could be saved by abolishing co-pilots. Mr O’Leary said that a flight attendant could be trained to land the plane if the pilot ran into problems. "Really, you only need one pilot. Let's take out the second pilot. Let the bl**dy computer fly it," Mr O’Leary told Bloomberg Business Week. "If the pilot has an emergency, he rings the bell, he calls her in, she could take over." However, pilots are angered at his comments, saying the move would put passengers’ lives at risk. “His suggestion is unwise, unsafe and the public will be horrified," a spokesman for the British Airline Pilots’ Association told the UK’s Sky News. Mr O’Leary has found himself in hot water before over his suggestions to reduce the number of toilets onboard aircraft and make them coin operated. He also announced plans for stand-up seating on planes.

Qantas is thinking of flying down to Rio Matt O'Sullivan September 6, 2010 QANTAS is considering tapping into the booming Brazilian economy by flying to either Sao Paulo or the popular tourist destination of Rio de Janeiro. Any decision to begin flights to Brazil is likely to result in the airline dropping services to Argentina's capital, Buenos Aires, because there is insufficient traffic to maintain two routes to South America. Qantas would not comment on the speculation, but insiders said it was not a surprise to hear that Brazil was high on the airline's list of possible destinations because the resource-rich economy was booming. Sao Paulo's two airports have about twice the annual passenger traffic of Buenos Aires. The Australia-Buenos Aires route is understood to still be unprofitable for Qantas despite a general improvement in demand for international flights. Argentina's flag carrier, Aerolineas Argentinas, is planning to fly directly between Sydney and Buenos Aires early next year rather than stop over in Auckland, which would prove a bigger threat to Qantas on the route. Flying to Sao Paulo or Rio de Janeiro could be a challenge for Qantas because of the long flight time. It would have to be flown by a four-engine aircraft such as a Boeing 747-400, which would not be able to take a full payload because of the distance between Sydney and either of the two Brazilian cities. Some insiders said a broader alliance with Chile's flag carrier, LAN, which allowed Qantas to link to more South American destinations, made better sense than direct flights to Brazil. Qantas already codeshares on LAN flights between Sydney and Chile's capital, Santiago. LAN and Qantas are both in the oneworld alliance, although the Chilean airline's recent takeover bid for the Brazilian airline TAM has cast some doubt over whether it will remain. TAM recently joined Star Alliance. Insiders also said it was not the right time for Qantas to start a new route and it would be better to wait to see whether the global economy avoided entering a double-dip recession.

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The quake was felt through much of New Zealand's South Island where Christchurch is located on its east coast, local media said. Christchurch International Airport, the main international gateway to the South Island, has been closed and rail movement in the South Island has been stopped while facilities are checked.

Airport, rail lines closed Christchurch Airport is closed, and a spokeswoman said it was unlikely to reopen before 10am at the earliest. Spokesman Gareth Owen said the airport was closed until 10am to conduct checks on possible damage to buildings or runways. Checks were being conducted on buildings and runways. Owen said there did not appear to be any major structural damage "at this stage". All inbound flights had been diverted, while aircraft in the city were staying on the ground. Owen said most passengers were staying away from the airport, while those who were there were being "well-catered for". Ad Feedback He said the airport would review the situation soon, and could extend the closure if necessary. The rail network in the South Island has been shut down while it is inspected for damage.

A UPS cargo plane with two crew members on board crashed shortly after takeoff Friday outside Dubai, officials said. Reuters reports that authorities said the bodies of the two crewmembers were recovered. The plane went down inside an Emirati air base near a busy highway intersection about 10 miles southeast of Dubai's international airport. The state news agency WAM reported the crash occurred in an unpopulated desert area, suggesting there may not have been casualties on the ground.