Feds Require More Passenger Info

<B> Feds Require More Passenger Info</B>

By Barbara Cook

<I>Washington </I>- Following up on recommendations made by the White House Commission on Aviation Safety and Security, the Transportation Department is requiring U.S. and foreign airlines to collect additional traveler information for passenger manifests on international flights.

The ruling mandates that carriers collect the full name of each U.S. citizen on all flights and request a contact name for each passenger. In the event of an aviation disaster, the airline is required to hand over the manifest to the State Department so next of kin can be notified quickly.

At the same time, the Federal Aviation Administration is implementing commission recommendations by requiring fire detection and suppression systems to be installed in aircraft cargo holds.

Investigators of the ValuJet crash in the Florida Everglades concluded the disaster most likely was caused by a fire that started in the cargo area. The Federal Aviation Administration is giving airlines and manufacturers three years to refit 3,700 affected aircraft with these system.

FAA, meanwhile, reported no major safety problems at the Boeing manufacturing plants thatproduce horizontal stabilizers for 737 aircraft.

The agency launched the investigation into the equipment following the crash of a SilkAir 737 in Indonesia late last year.