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• JAKARTA, Indonesia (AP) -- Dozens of fledgling airlines that have sprung up to serve Indonesia's island-hopping new middle class could jeopardize the archipelago's recently improved safety reputation, aviation experts say.
• The trend threatens to erode higher standards established during what

one analyst called a "tremendous amount of soul searching" by major carriers and the government after 2007, when frequent crashes prompted the European Union to ban all Indonesian airlines from landing on its runways for two years.
• With growth rates of nearly 20 percent per year, Indonesia is one of Asia's most rapidly expanding airline markets, but the country is struggling to provide qualified pilots, mechanics, air traffic controllers and updated airport technology to ensure safety. And with so many new, small carriers, it's hard to monitor all their standards.
• "We are not ready for this boom," said Ruth Simatupang, an Indonesian aviation consultant and former safety investigator.
• Indonesia's two largest airlines -- national carrier Garuda and rapidly expanding boutique airline Lion Air -- haven't had a fatal accident in five years and eight years, respectively. But small passenger and cargo carriers plus military aircraft have kept the frequency of crashes to about once every two months, according to statistics

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