Tupolevs grounded after Xian air crash

CHINA Northwest Airlines has grounded eight of its 10 remaining Tupolev-154s after one of the Russian-made jetliners crashed last week, killing all 160 people on board.

A spokesman for the airline confirmed yesterday that its TU-154 fleet had undergone a general check-up after the crash near the central Chinese city of Xian, the worst accident in China's aviation history.

He admitted some of the Tupolevs had not been in good condition.

However, he maintained the check was a precaution.

He said not all its Tupolevs had had to be recalled from service, and the stoppage would be temporary.

''We just want to be safe,'' the spokesman said.

However, he denied reports that the autonomic aviation equipment of the crashed aircraft had had difficulties functioning 13 times before last week's accident.