Asiana Airlines will enhance their training program for pilots seeking to convert to flying new aircraft as part of an effort to improve safety measures after the crash of Asiana Airlines flight 777 in San Francisco, according to Reuters. They made the announcement on Monday.
The crash resulted in the deaths of three Chinese teenagers, as well as 180 injuries.
The pilot was in training to fly a 777 and the co-pilot he was flying with was on his first flight as an instructor. Both were experienced pilots, though they had never flown together before, according to the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board.
"We will bolster our training program...when a pilot converts to a jet from a different manufacturer," Asiana Airlines said in a presentation to the government, which was shown to reporters.
Under current rules, Asiana pilots have to fly 10 flights and a total of 60 hours on a 777 to complete the training program, a spokeswoman for the airline has said.
The new training measures include safety enhancing training for visual approach and automated flight, as well as conducting flight inspections on airports.
The pilots on the Asiana Boeing 777 made a visual approach to San Francisco airport, and they relied on automatic equipment to maintain their airspeed.
In addition, Asiana will improve their communications skills among crewmembers and introduce a system to manage "fatigue risk." They will also set up maintenance teams for Boeing and Airbus, while enhancing safety management systems.
Asiana Airlines has also announced plans to sue the U.S. television station that falsely reported racially offensive fake names for the pilots of the Asiana flight.
"The KTVU report that not only disparaged Asians in general through the use of racially charged epithets, but also severely damaged the reputation of Asiana Airlines," the statement released by the airline in response to the news report said.
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