The airplane received its type certificate from the Civil Aviation Administration of China in June 2000. The MA60 has not applied for FAA (US) and EASA (Europe) type certification, and is not certified for use in the European Union or the US.[6][7] The general designer of MA-60 series is Lü Hai (吕海).
Xi'an MA60-MPA Fearless Albatross: Maritime patrol and ASW variant offered for sale at Airshow China 2002.[8]
Xi'an MA40: Reduced capacity 40-seat variant offered for sale in 2002.[8]
Xi'an MA60H-500: A military cargo version of the MA-60, with rear cargo ramp.[8]
Xi'an MA600: A much improved MA60, the prototype of which was completed on 29 June 2008.[8]
Operators
As of October 2006, XAC has received over 90 MA60 orders. The factory had delivered 23 MA60s by the end of 2006, and expects to deliver an additional 165 by the end of 2016.[9] The aircraft is popular with air charter companies and small feeder airlines, and is operated by private individuals and companies.[10]
As of 13 November 2015, there had been 14 accidents involving the MA60. One accident was fatal (MZ8968) resulting in 21 passenger and 4 crew deaths.[14] This caused New Zealand to suspend tourism aid to Tonga, and warned tourists about flying the aircraft which had been donated to the country.[15]
On 11 January 2009, an MA60 operated by Philippine carrier Zest Airways crashed at Caticlan Airport when it landed short of the runway, skidded out of control and crashed into a concrete barrier. The aircraft caught fire and suffered extensive damage to its wing, landing gear, undercarriage and one engine. Several passengers were injured.[16]
In June 2009, an MA60 operated by Zest overshot the runway while trying to land at Caticlan airport. As a consequence of this accident lengthening of the runway and the flattening of a hill that obstructs one of its approaches was carried out.[17]
On 7 May 2011, Merpati Nusantara Airlines Flight 8968 (with Indonesian registration PK-MZK) went into the sea only 500 metres from the runway[18] in bad weather with poor visibility on a visual approach to Kaimana Airport, Kaimana, West Papua in Indonesia. It had left Sorong Airport with 19 passengers and 6 crew members on board.[19] All passengers and crew were killed, making this the first reported fatal accident for the Xi'an MA60. On 24 August 2011, Indonesia's Transportation Minister determined human error was to blame for the disaster.[20]
On 9 January 2012, a TAM flight from Riberalta Airport to Guayaramerín Airport, Bolivia operated by FAB-96 landed with the undercarriage not deployed due to a fault, resulting in substantial damage to the aircraft. There were no injuries amongst the five crew and sixteen passengers.[21]
On 16 May 2013, a Myanma Airways flight from Heho Airport to Monghsat Airport in Myanmar overran the runway on landing, resulting in two serious injuries and substantial damage to the aircraft. The MA60 allegedly suffered a brake failure.[22]
On 10 June 2013, Merpati Nusantara Airlines Flight 6517 (with Indonesian registration PK-MZO) from Bajawa to Kupang, with 50 people on board landed hard at Kupang airport in East Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia. Twenty-five people were injured. The plane, which was damaged beyond repair, lay on its belly on the runway with its engines jammed face down into the tarmac and its wings bent forward.[23] Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC) has released a preliminary report on this accident. The preliminary report consisted of factual information collected until the preliminary report was published without analysis and conclusion.[24]
On 10 June 2013, Myanma Airways flight UB309 from Mawlamyine, Myanmar, carrying four crew members and 60 passengers swerved off the runway upon landing at Kawthaung. The plane came to a stop in bushes about 60 metres to the west of the runway, with smoke coming from the left side propeller housing and the propellers on both wings damaged. There were no injuries. It is possible the captain was too early in switching the nosewheel steering to the 'taxi' mode during the landing roll and lost directional control. A similar incident occurred in December 2011.[25]
On 4 February 2014, Joy Air flight JR1533 from Taiyuan, China, carrying 7 crew members and 37 passengers, had a mechanical failure of the landing gear while landing at Zhengzhou. This caused the landing gear to break and the aircraft's nose cone to hit the tarmac. There were no injuries.[26]
On 10 May 2015, Joy Air flight JR1529 from Yiwu to Fuzhou with 45 passengers and 7 crew landed on Fuzhou runway 3 at about 11:57 but veered off the runway and came to a stop off the runway edge about 500 metres past the runway threshold and about 50 metres off the runway centerline with all gear on soft ground. The engines struck the ground causing the wings to be nearly torn off, and resulted in substantial damage to the fuselage and structure. 7 people on board were injured.[27]
On 13 November 2015, Lao Skyway flight LLL 265 overshot the runway at Vientiane.[28]
Operational problems
Real Tonga's MA60 in 2014
The New Zealand Government suspended its programme of development aid to Tonga's tourism industry in July 2013 after an MA60 donated by the Chinese Government was delivered to the airline Real Tonga.[29] In August 2013 the New Zealand Government also issued a statement advising tourists to not travel on Real Tonga's MA60 on the grounds that "this aircraft has been involved in a significant number of accidents in the last few years", and the type "is not certified to fly in New Zealand or other comparable jurisdictions".[30][31] Real Tonga ceased operating the MA60 in early 2015 after the Tongan Government passed legislation adopting New Zealand's civil aviation regulations.[32] A proposal to re-establish Royal Tongan Airlines to operate the MA60 was reported later in the year.[33]
Of the 57 MA60s exported by January 2016, at least 26 were in storage after safety concerns, maintenance problems or performance issues; six others were damaged beyond repair.[34]
On 26 March 2019 the Cameroon Civil Aviation Authority (CCAA) suspended the airworthiness certificate of the MA60 following a tail strike accident. The aircraft was allowed to operate again one day later.[35]
In August 2020, Nepal Airlines grounded its fleet of 2 MA60s due to their sub-standard performance and high operating costs. The aircraft had been acquired in 2012 and as per a Nepal Airlines board member, "The 2012 decision to buy the aircraft was prompted by greed for commissions. The Nepali experts submitted a fabricated report. The Y12E was compared with the Twin Otter, and the MA60 was compared with the ATR 72. Nepal Airlines is paying the price now".[36]
Specifications (MA60)
Data from Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004[37]
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^ a b c d e f g h"World Air Forces 2022". Flightglobal Insight. 2022. Retrieved November 10, 2022.
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^Chong, Aaron (May 11, 2015). "Joy MA60 accident likely to be type's fifth hull loss". Flightglobal. Archived from the original on May 20, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
^Thompson, Chuck. "'Unsafe' Chinese airplane hurting Tonga tourism". CNN. Archived from the original on June 13, 2015. Retrieved June 11, 2015.
^"PICTURE: Zest MA60 crashes on landing in Philippines". Flight International. January 12, 2009. Archived from the original on January 26, 2012. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
^"Philippines' Zest MA60 overshoots runway at Caticlan". Flight International. June 25, 2009. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved December 22, 2011.
^"Three bodies from crashed Merpati plane burried [sic] in Papua". Antara News. Archived from the original on August 11, 2011. Retrieved 9 May 2011.
^"Indonesia: 'No survivors' after plane crashes off Papua". BBC News. May 7, 2011. Archived from the original on May 8, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2018.
^"Government Says Human Error to Blame for Merpati Airline Disaster". The Jakarta Globe. Archived from the original on September 29, 2012. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
^Hradecky, Simon (January 9, 2012). "Accident: TAM Bolivia MA60 at Guayaramerin on Jan 9th 2012, gear up landing". The Aviation Herald. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved January 10, 2012.
^Hradecky, Simon (May 16, 2013). "Accident: Myanma MA60 at Monghsat on May 16th 2013, runway excursion". The Aviation Herald. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved May 17, 2013.
^Hradecky, Simon (June 10, 2013). "Accident: Merpati MA60 at Kupang on Jun 10th 2013, landed short of runway and broke up". The Aviation Herald. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
^"Aircraft Accident Investigation Report (Preliminary) Merpati Nusantara Airlines Xi'An Aircraft Industry MA60; PK-MZO El Tari Airport, Kupang Republic of Indonesia, 10 June 2013" (PDF). National Transportation Safety Committee. July 9, 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 25, 2013. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
^Hradecky, Simon (June 10, 2013). "Incident: Myanma MA60 at Kawthaung on Jun 10th 2013, runway excursion". The Aviation Herald. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
^中時電子報. "新鄭機場飛機降落墜地 無人傷亡". 中時電子報. Archived from the original on January 16, 2019. Retrieved January 16, 2019.
^Hradecky, Simon (May 10, 2015). "Accident: Joy MA60 at Fuzhou on May 10th 2015, runway excursion on landing". The Aviation Herald. Archived from the original on January 10, 2016. Retrieved May 10, 2015.
^"2015-11-13 Lao Skyway MA-60 off runway at Vientiane » JACDEC" (in German). JACDEC. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
^Arrow, Brendan (July 10, 2013). "Tonga loses NZ aid over use of suspect Chinese aircraft". ABC News. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
^Schwartz, Dominique (August 10, 2013). "New Zealand issues traveller warning over Tonga's MA60 plane safety". ABC News. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
^"Tonga". Safe Travel. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Archived from the original on August 14, 2013. Retrieved August 10, 2013.
^"Notorious Tongan plane at centre of NZ travel warning grounded". TVNZ. February 10, 2015. Archived from the original on March 5, 2017. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
^"MA60 threat to Tonga's sole domestic carrier". Radio New Zealand International. June 12, 2015. Archived from the original on March 24, 2017. Retrieved August 17, 2015.
^Daniel Stacey and Chun Han Wong (March 20, 2016). "China's MA60 safety record undermines aviation dream". Wall Street Journal.
^"Accident: Camair MA60 at Bafoussam on Mar 10th 2019, tail strike". March 26, 2019. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
^"Nepal Airlines retires MA-60s, Y12Es". Ch-Aviation. July 17, 2020.
^Jackson 2003, p. 95.
^Lednicer, David. "The Incomplete Guide to Airfoil Usage". m-selig.ae.illinois.edu. Retrieved April 16, 2019.
Jackson, Paul. Jane's All The World's Aircraft 2003–2004. Coulsdon, UK: Jane's Information Group, 2003. ISBN 0-7106-2537-5.
Laos.jpg/1280px-Merpati_Xian_MA60_after_take_off_from_Ngurah_Rai_Airport_(2).jpg)
