Deadly taiwan airlines crash

　　81 of the 179 passengers on board singapore airline s 747 were killed in taipei on Wednesday, nov.1.37 were hospitalized and 61 suffered minor injuries or escaped unhurt, taiwanese officials said. At least 23 of the 47 U.S. citizens listed on board were killed-although the state department was still working on a final update of the numbers of american survivors and victims.

　　Singapore airlines defended its pilot's decision to take off during a typhoon while investigators on Wednes day searches for an object that the boeing 747-400 may have hit before catching fire and breaking into three p ieces.

　　Early speclation pointed to gusting winds as a poss ible factor in the boeing 747-400's accident. But the a irline and taiwanese aviation officials said the vetera n pilot, capt. C.K.Foong, wasn't reckless for deciding to fly.

　　By midday, emergency workers had pulled the last bo dies and the fight recorder black boxes from the wrecka ge of the los angeles-bound jumbo jet, which crashed on takeoff from tappei's airport in heavy wind and rain be fore midnight on Tuesday. Meanwhile, medical workers we re trying to identify the bodies, many of which were ba dly burned. Most of the corpeses were stored in body ba gs in an old terminal at the airport. DNA tests were ex pected to be completed Thursday.

　　Capt. Foong-who survived the crash---"saw an object on the runway and he tried to take off to avoid the obj ect, and he hit the object," said a singapore airlines spokesman who wouldn't say what the plane might have st ruck. Chou kuang-tsan of the aviation safety council, w hich investigates taiwanese air accidents, noted the pl ane apparently swerved off its runway and onto a spare runway, which was under repair. Chou said it was not cl ear why the plane veered off the runway.

　　Singapore airlines said it would provide all famili es of victims with $25,000 immediate compensation. The accdent was the first major one for singapore airlines in 28 years of operation. A flight will leave Thursday from L.A.to take U.S. relatives to taiwan.

　　In washington, the national transportantion safety board said it was sending a team of investigators to he lp taiwan authorities probe the disaster. The eight-mem ber NISB team was expected to arrive in taiwan on Thurs day evening.

　　The plane that burst into flames thesday was bought new in january 1997, airline spokesman james boyd said. He said there had been no problems with the aircraft, w hich underwent its last maintenance check on sept. 16. Singapore airlines, the world's largest operator of 747 s and also one of the world's most profitable airlines, had one of the industry's best safety records.