TAIWAN : Airline Admits Error in Deadly 1994 Crash

Taiwan’s China Airlines dropped its claim of innocence and acknowledged that errors by its pilots contributed to a 1994 crash that killed 264 people near Nagoya, Japan. The airline stopped short of taking full responsibility, saying a final report issued by Japanese authorities also blamed design flaws in the aircraft. The statement contrasted with China Airlines’ earlier assertion that reports linking human error to the crash were “unacceptable.” In the report, Japan’s Transport Ministry said the crash was caused by pilot errors that stalled the automatic piloting system.