Angry passengers blast Yemenia planes

Jul 02, 2009 at 15:27

UPDATE 1: 1st flight to Comoros since crash arrive with furious passengers labelling planes 'flying coffins'.

Furious passengers disembarking from Yemenia's first flight to the Comoros since its jet crashed off the archipelago this week described the company's planes on Thursday as "flying coffins".

"My brother-in-law died in the crash. I dropped him at the airport on Monday for the flight departing from Paris," said Hassan Abderemane, wearing an embroidered traditional hat and a long white robe as a sign of mourning.

Asked why he took the same route as the downed airliner, aboard a similar A310 plane, he said: "I didn't have a choice. I had to come for the funeral and other airlines like Air Madagascar and Kenya Airways were full."

"Taking a flying coffin is scary," he added as he waited for his baggage. Comoran expatriates in France have criticised the poor state of repair of Yemenia's planes, and the European Union had placed the company's planes under scrutiny for unspecified "deficiencies" in 2007.

One passenger arriving at Moroni's Prince Said Ibrahim airport from Paris at 4:15 a.m. said Tuesday's crash was a tragedy waiting to happen.

"It was an accident that we were expecting to happen. Over the years the diaspora has been criticising the poor maintenance of this plane between Yemen and Comoros," he said.

"I lost my niece in the crash. She was coming for a wedding on Aug. 2. This is terrible," he said, his lips trembling before he finally burst into tears.

On Wednesday Comorans staged a protest at Paris Charles de Gaulle airport to highlight what they called poor safety standards on Yemenia planes, while in Marseille protestors shut down two travel agents selling Yemenia tickets.

An Airbus A310, which had been banned from French airspace because of its poor safety record but used by the company on its Sanaa to Moroni route, plunged into the sea early Tuesday with 153 people on board.

So far only one survivor has been rescued, and hopes had faded Thursday of finding any others.

The flight left Paris on Monday for Marseille and Sanaa aboard a modern Airbus A330 before passengers switched to the 19-year-old Airbus A310 to continue to Djibouti and Moroni.

Amid the grief and anger, 48-year-old Mariam Moindjie counted herself lucky after missing Tuesday's flight because she was too late for check-in.

"It is a miracle," she told news agency AFP.

Other passengers spoke of a calm mood aboard the aircraft and the crew's unusual conviviality. One of them showed photographs of mis-matched and dilapidated seats.

The passengers arriving in Moroni early Thursday, many of them relatives of the 152 people killed on Flight 626, were greeted by a guard of honour from soldiers, firefighters and officials as departing passengers dozed in the dimly-lit concourse.

"There is a reigning sadness," said Ali Aman, who lost his sister and two nieces who were coming home for holidays.

"We have lost all hope. It is now more than 48 hours," she added. "Why are there different planes for the West and for the Third World?"

"Why are we given junk planes in Sanaa. This is dishonest."

Comorans have also been angered by what they said was a lack of information about the search operations while others blamed the government for not caring about their welfare.

"We in the diaspora get this country's economy running. The government cannot let us be transported this way," complained Zainab Mohamed, another passenger.