Indonesian air safety on the radar after another fatal crash 

The accident, which appears to have claimed the lives of all 189 people on board, deals a serious blow to the industry’s reputation only four months after the European Commission (EC) cleared all Indonesian carriers from the European Union Air Safety blacklist.
Efforts are still under way in the Java Sea to locate the Lion Air Boeing 737-MAX aircraft, its passengers and crew and also the black box. International scrutiny follows every crash, especially involving a carrier as big as Lion Air. 
In 2007 the United States and the EU prohibited all Indonesian carriers from operating in their skies for failure to meet international safety standards, following a series of accidents involving airlines certified in the country. In the following years, improvements were made and one by one Indonesian airlines, including Lion Air, regained permits to fly over the US and Europe. 

Cost-cutting budget carriers
The investigation into the cause of Monday’s crash renews concerns that Indonesian airlines have not done enough to lift safety standards. Out of concern for its citizens’ safety, Australia’s government has warned its officials and contractors against flying Lion Air pending findings from the crash investigation.
The issue of safety standards is the topmost question when it comes to accidents involving a mode of transportation. In the airline industry concerns over safety have heightened ever since low-cost carriers, including Lion Air, emerged as a game-changer in the business. Recent years have seen budget airlines flourish and force the established, full-service players to stretch themselves to the limit.
A number of once prominent flag carriers succumbed to the tough competition, but low-cost carriers continued to thrive. There have been allegations that airlines that offer cheap flights cheat their passengers by compromising on safety rules, by reducing maintenance spending, minimising overall checks or cannibalising spare parts.
But the accusations have never been backed with strong evidence. Several low-cost carriers make it onto the list of airlines with the best safety record in the world. In the case of Lion Air, since 2002 it has suffered at least 20 recorded accidents, with two of them, the crash near Adi Soemarmo International Airport in Surakarta, Central Java, in 2004 and the latest one on Monday, resulting in fatalities.
It will be up to Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee to determine the cause of this latest crash. But all carriers bear a responsibility to ensure the safety of their passengers. It’s not enough to “make people fly”, as the Lion Air tagline goes. We need to fly safely.