JAKARTA: EAC MEETING, MARCH 29, 2007

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 000906

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPT FOR EAP/MTS, DS/IP/EAP, DS/DSS/IP, DS/DSS/ITA, DS/CC,
CA/OCS, EEB/TRA/AN, SINGAPORE FOR FAA

E.O. 12958: DECL: 03/28/2017
TAGS: PTER CASC AEMR ASEC PGOV EAIR ID
SUBJECT: JAKARTA: EAC MEETING, MARCH 29, 2007

REF: SECSTATE 39366

Classified By: Charge d' Affaires a.i. John A. Heffern for Reasons: 1.4
(b) and (d).


1. (C) Summary: The Embassy held an Emergency Action
Committee (EAC) meeting on March 29, 2007, to discuss the
issues of airline safety in Indonesia and the recent arrest
of 8 Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) members in East Java. The CG and
ECONCOUNS discussed a recent media release by the Indonesian
Directorate General of Civil Aviation which rated whether
Indonesian airlines had met minimal requirements of civil
aviation regulations. The EAC agreed to revise the Aviation
Safety portion of the Consular Information Sheet (CIS) and,
when released by the Department, issue a Warden Message
pointing out the dangers of airline travel in Indonesia. The
RSO then briefed the EAC on the arrest of 8 members of JI who
were found to have large quantities of weapons. End Summary


2. (U) In light of the January 1, 2007 Adam Air crash off
the coast of Sulawesi; the February 21, 2007 Adam Air flight
that was damaged upon landing in Surabaya; and the March 7,
2007 Garuda Airlines crash in Jogjakarta, airline safety has
become a key issue in Indonesia. On March 22, 2007, the
Indonesian Directorate General of Civil Aviation issued a
media release outlining the results of an operational
performance assessment on Indonesian commercial airlines
which placed each in one of three performance categories
based on whether they had met and implemented minimal
requirements of civil aviation safety regulations. No
airline had met the requirements of civil aviation safety
regulations (Category I). Most of the larger airlines --
including Garuda -- had met minimal requirements, but some
requirements had yet to be implemented (Category II).
Several airlines -- including Adam Air -- had yet to
implement minimal requirements, which "may reduce safety
levels" (Category III). On March 27, the Australian Embassy
in Jakarta issued a Travel Bulletin advising Australian
citizens in Indonesia that Australian government officials
have been advised to avoid flying on Category III airlines.
However, the Ministry of Transportation has not released
information on its methodology for the rating system, and
some airline industry observers have questioned its validity.



3. (SBU) The EAC agreed that there are serious concerns
about airline safety in Indonesia. However, prohibiting
Embassy employees from using certain airlines is not a
practical solution. Certain destinations in which the
Embassy has important projects are serviced by only one or
two airlines; banning travel on those airlines would render
those destinations inaccessible. In addition, neither the
Embassy nor any other independent organization in Indonesia
has the capacity to assess the safety of individual
Indonesian air carriers. Further, road or sea travel is
impractical and no safer than airline travel. The Embassy
received reftel stating that the FAA will soon take action to
revise Indonesia's safety oversight category from Category I
to Category II.


4. (SBU) The EAC agreed to revise the Aviation Safety
language in the CIS to state that Indonesian airlines do not
meet international safety standards. American citizens
should consider using non-Indonesian carriers as much as
possible to fly directly to their destination in Indonesia
and not transfer to a domestic airline once in Indonesia.
The revised CIS would also note that Indonesia's own rating
system has determined that no carriers fully meet
international safety standards and give information on how
American citizens could access that information. Once the
CIS has been issued, the Management Section will advise the
Embassy community and the Consular Section will publicize the
CIS through a Warden Message that will highlight the aviation
safety section.


5. (S) The RSO also briefed the EAC on the arrest of 8 JI
members in East Java who possessed a stockpile of weapons and
ammunition. The RSO reminded the EAC that JI is still lethal
and is still targeting Western interests; the police have yet
to capture Noordin Top or Abu Dujana. To date, evidence
recovered in the police raids on JI safehouses does not
indicate an imminent threat to US interests.


6. (C) The RSO also discussed a recent rash of bomb threats
targeting the Embassy and other locations. He noted that all
22 were hoaxes. The RSO takes each bomb threat seriously and
insists the police send an EOD team in each instance. Also,
after every bomb threat, police and Embassy local guards

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thoroughly inspect the Embassy compound and perimeter.


7. (C) The EAC agreed that despite these arrests, the
Embassy did not need to issue a Warden Message or heighten
the Travel Warning.
HEFFERN