Crash Renews Focus on Developing World's Air Safety

After yesterday’s Yemeni Airbus crash, international watchdogs are taking a closer look at airline safety in developing countries, Bloomberg reports. The European Union may add Yemen to a list of more than 90 dangerous airlines from around the globe. Regulators in developing countries “tend to be under- supported by the governments; therefore there’s nobody enforcing the standards,” said a flight-safety advocate.

“Some of these airlines are essentially operating without any type of oversight, and travelers need to be aware,” said a former US transport official. The EU updates its list four times yearly; the US Federal Aviation Administration has a similar compendium. Yemenia Airways met the safety guidelines of Montreal’s International Air Transport Association in 2007 and is due for another audit next year. (More Yemen stories.)