Sriwijaya Air flight SJ182 crash: Mourning with victims’ next-oin & Indonesian citizens

News of the Sriwijaya Air flight SJ182 passenger airplane crash brings sadness. My heartfelt condolences and deepest empathies are extended to the victims’ families, friends and all Indonesian peoples and their government. May they find closure from this tragedy.

The Malaysian Embassy in Jakarta has confirmed that no Malaysian citizens were onboard the ill-fated passenger aircraft.

The crash is a heavy blow to the aviation industry struggling to recover as it has been terribly affected worldwide by the Covid-19 pandemic. The ravaging coronavirus saw the number of flights in 2020 reduced by 42% globally. Most airlines no longer have regular passenger flow. With airplanes parked at the airport apron, many airlines have also declared bankruptcy or are at the verge of bankruptcy. This latest air crash will undoubtedly cast a heavy shadow unto the aviation industry.

According to statistics by Dutch consulting company To70, large commercial airlines were involved in 0.27 fatal accidents per million flights in 2020, or 1 fatal crash for every 3.7 million flights. These figures are higher than the number of fatal air crashes per million of flights in 2019 whereby there were 0.18 fatal accidents per million flight, of which 299 people lost their lives last year.

Dr Tee Ching Seng
MCA International Communication & Diplomacy Bureau Chairman

-MCA online-