Y2k questions about foreign airports -- By ASHLEY BAKER

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Y2k questions about foreign airports

United Press International - December 26, 1999 21:05

By ASHLEY BAKER

WASHINGTON, Dec. 26 (UPI) - Airport computer systems in more than two dozen countries frequently visited by U.S. air travelers may be unprepared for the year 2000 date change, government data shows.

The Federal Aviation Administration, which has been reporting the year 2000 readiness of key foreign airports, said most of the countries simply started working on the issue too late.

Slow-starters listed by the FAA include Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Colombia, El Salvador, Fiji, Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary, Indonesia, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, St. Kitts West Indies, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago and Uruguay. Cape Verde, Guyana, Haiti, Marshall Islands, Paraguay, Poland, Russia, Samoa, Senegal and Venezuela also were listed as questionable because they failed to provide sufficient information on their year 2000 preparations, the FAA said.

Agency officials said the countries' lack of year 2000 readiness did not necessarily translate into year 2000 safety problems.

``To date, our analysis has not identified any aircraft safety problem associated with the year 2000 which would justify prohibition of aircraft from U.S. airspace,'' the FAA said in a statement.

Domestic preparedness received much higher marks, with each of the 10 largest U.S. domestic carriers receiving a thumbs-up from the agency. The 10 carriers account for over 95 percent of all air travel, according to the FAA.

While FAA officials say they are continuing to verify compliance among U.S. airlines, they acknowledge that assessments for foreign airports are based ``primarily upon self-reported information'' and are not ``subject to independent verification.''

So far, the Department of Transportation has declined to impose flight restrictions on any country, and officials said they would do so only if a ``known, verifiable safety problem'' existed.

This approach has drawn criticism from the Department of Transportation's Inspector General Kenneth Mead, who told lawmakers in October that it may not be enough to ensure the safety of American's traveling abroad.

``We are not persuaded this approach will be sufficient because the Federal Aviation Administration is not likely to have verified evidence of problems until after Dec. 31, 1999,'' Mead said.

In an October interview with United Press International, a spokesman for the Department of Transportation declined to discuss what would happen if countries failed to submit the information.

``We want the American public to have this information, and we're going to continue to seek it,'' said Dave Smallen, a spokesman for the Department.

While numerous government and non-government reports have expressed concern over air traffic safety in foreign countries, most have singled out Russia as particularly vulnerable.

In October testimony before Congress, the International Federation of Air Line Pilots' Association said ``while we are reasonably confident that the Y2K situation is well under control regarding air traffic control in the Western European area, we are somewhat less confident that the same situation exists in Eastern Europe.''

The association then quoted Russia's chief air control officer, Col. Gen. Anatoly Kornukov, as saying that Russian air traffic control systems ``have been in critical condition since the early 1990s, and flight safety levels will continue to fall drastically until they are 80 percent below the level of the Western world.''

Questions about different countries' technical preparedness also come at a time of heightened concern about possible terrorist attacks against American citizens. As a result, security has been ordered tightened at American airports.

The FAA said Dec. 21 that travelers should expect delays resulting from tighter security precautions at airports. The stepped-up security measures include stricter enforcement of parking regulations, more frequent use of electronic bomb detection devices and additional bomb- sniffing dogs and uniformed security officers.

A State Department warning issued Dec. 21 said, ``Terrorists may be planning to conduct attacks, including against official and non-official Americans, in and around the New Year period, from now through mid- January 2000.''

-- Copyright 1999 by United Press International All rights reserved



-- Brooklyn (MSIS@cyberdude.com), December 27, 1999


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