SRP lawmaker Son Chhay wrote to Cabinet Minister Sok An calling for an explanation of last month’s PMT Air crash in Kampot province and a full disclosure of contracts that the government has with airlines operating in Cambodia, according to a copy of his letter received Wednesday.
The letter, which was stamped by National Assembly and CPP Honorary President Heng Samrin on Tuesday, also asked the government to reveal the fees it charges for operation licenses for all airlines flying in Cambodia.
“I call on excellency [Sok An] to provide the correct documents as soon as possible,” Son Chhay wrote in the letter dated July 3.
Seng Vanny, director of administration at the State Secretariat for Civil Aviation, said that he had seen Son Chhay’s request, adding that Chea Aun, the department’s director-general, had assigned staff to locate all documents that could be used to respond.
Soy Sokhan, civil aviation undersecretary of state, said that every airline must have insurance and that all contracts the government has with airlines operating in Cambodia meet international standards.
“[Airlines] all have proper documents and insurance,” he said.
Twenty-two people were killed when PMT Air Flight U4 241 from Siem Reap International Airport to Sihanoukville’s Kang Keng Airport went down in the heavily forested mountains of Kampot. Government officials have attributed the crash to bad weather.
Sar Sareth, director of PMT Air, said that his company, which has discontinued all domestic flights since the crash, has proper contracts with the government and insurance.
“As an airline operation, if we don’t have insurance, we will not be allowed to operate,” he said.
Sar Sareth said that he was uncertain when a full assessment of the plane crash will be released, but said PMT Air domestic flights won’t begin again until it is.
The plane’s two flight data recorders, also known as black boxes, have been sent to Russia for analysis.
