Survivors say jet shook before landing (Garuda Airlines, Indonesia air crash)

AP on Yahoo ^ | 3/7/07 | Irwan Furdaus - ap

[NormsRevenge]

YOGYAKARTA, Indonesia - Survivors of the fiery crash-landing of a Boeing 737-400 Wednesday said the plane appeared to be going too fast and shook violently before it touched down, lurched off the runway and exploded in flames, killing at least 21 people.

About 115 dazed and bloodied survivors staggered from the Indonesian jetliner after it broke through a fence and came to rest in a rice paddy. Most escaped without major injuries, although several suffered burns and broken bones.

Those killed were trapped in the wreckage of the Garuda Airlines plane after it suddenly caught fire, sending billowing clouds of black smoke and flames high into the air. The plane had been carrying 140 passengers and crew, officials said. Two people were missing.

It was the third plane crash in as many months in Indonesia, and raised questions about the safety of the country's booming airline sector.

Alessandro Bertellotti, a journalist with Italian broadcaster RAI, said the plane was going at a "crazy speed" as it approached Yogyakarta airport after a 50-minute flight from the capital, Jakarta.

"It was going into a dive and I was certain we would crash on the ground," he told the Italian news agency ANSA. "I was sitting behind the wing. I saw that the pilot was trying to stop it, but it was too fast. It literarily bounced on the strip."

A man who lived near the crash site said the plane reached the end of the runway and then "jumped in the air."

"I heard a loud noise and saw flames," said Subarno, who like many Indonesians uses a single name. "I saw a man — I think he was the pilot — shouting 'Get out! Get out!' Some people were on fire. Not long after, there were three explosions."

Wayan Sukarda, an Indonesian cameraman for Australia's Seven Network, managed to scramble off the plane, then shot dramatic video of dazed passengers fleeing as smoke poured from the fuselage. An explosion and fireball then ripped through the air, apparently as the fire reached a fuel tank, the footage showed.

Sukarda had called the network as the plane was crashing, a colleague told The West Australian newspaper. "He was screaming, 'The plane's crashing.' I thought he must have seen another plane crash. I didn't know it was the one he was on. You could hear all the alarms and sirens going off, people screaming," said Channel Seven's Danny Sim.

"I thanked God I survived. But then people started yelling 'Fire! Fire!" said Nuniek Sufithri, who is 10 weeks pregnant. "I tried to get out, but was trampled by the other passengers ... someone pulled me up, carried me to the back door and threw me out."

Sufithri, 30, was rushed to a hospital after a stranger found her in the rice paddy. She suffered no major injuries and did not miscarry.

About 19 foreigners were aboard the flight, nine of them Australian diplomats, journalists and security officials visiting the country for an anti-terrorism conference. Indonesian officials said at least two Australians were among the dead: a financial reporter and an embassy employee, according to the journalist's assistant and the state news agency Antara.

"It is a terrible tragedy," Australian Prime Minister John Howard told a nationally televised news conference. "Many lives have been lost, and our love and sympathy and condolences go to those who are suffering distress and grief."

The Indonesian government ordered an investigation into the crash, the latest in a series of accidents in the country. On New Year's Day, a jet plummeted into the sea, killing all 102 people aboard. Weeks later, a plane broke apart on landing, though there were no casualties.

In response, the government has said it would ban commercial airlines from operating planes more than 10 years old, but most experts say maintenance must be improved and the number of flights per day limited to reduce the amount of stress on planes.

Some have also called for Transportation Minister Hatta Radjasa to resign.

"He should not be allowed to wash his hands of this," Burhanuddin Napitulu, senior lawmaker from Indonesia's ruling party. "The public has lost all trust. They are too scared to take planes, trains or ferries any more because the disasters are never-ending."

Dozens of airlines have emerged since Indonesia started deregulating the industry in the late 1990s, and the rapid expansion has raised concerns that growth has outpaced the supply of trained aviation professionals, regulatory oversight, parts and ground infrastructure.

Although Garuda has had nine plane crashes in the past 30 years, killing 330, the airline has made strides recently on improving its safety regulations and training pilots. It had not had a major crash in a decade.

Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono appointed the security minister to look into possible "nontechnical" causes for the crash, said spokesman Andi Mallarangeng, an apparent reference to sabotage.

Howard, the Australian leader, said he did not believe foul play was involved. "I have not received any advice suggesting it was anything other than a tragic accident," he said in Melbourne.

Indonesia has been hit by a string of disasters in recent months. The plane crash came a day after an earthquake killed 52 people and injured hundreds on Sumatra island.

In late December, a passenger ferry sank in a storm in the Java Sea, killing more than 400 people. Days later, a Boeing 737 operated by the budget airline Adam Air crashed into the ocean, killing all 102 people on board. The plane's wreckage still has not been found. A ferry that sank near the capital's port last month left at least 50 dead.

[NormsRevenge]

Indonesian Airforce personnel search the wreckage of a plane at Yogyakarta airport March 7, 2007. The Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on Wednesday as it landed in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta, but most of the 140 people on board survived. Dozens of passengers leapt from the national carrier Garuda Airline plane's emergency exits into surrounding rice paddy fields to escape the inferno, which reduced the aircraft to a smouldering wreck of twisted metal. Twenty-three people, including two Australians, died in the crash, health ministry national crisis centre chief Rustam Pakaya said in a late afternoon text message to Reuters. REUTERS/Pen AAU/Handout (INDONESIA)

[NormsRevenge]

An Air Force officer stares at the burning fuselage of the Garuda Boeing 737-400 jet not long after it crash landed at Yogyakarta airport. The plane with more than 130 people aboard burst into flames and shot off the runway Wednesday after landing in Yogyakarta city, killing at least 21 people, officials said.(AFP/Tarko Sudiarno)

[NormsRevenge]

Smoke billows from the wreckage of a plane at Yogyakarta airport March 7, 2007. The Indonesian passenger jet overshot the runway and burst into flames on Wednesday as it landed in the cultural capital of Yogyakarta, but most of the 140 people on board survived. Dozens of passengers leapt from the national carrier Garuda Airline plane's emergency exits into surrounding rice paddy fields to escape the inferno, which reduced the aircraft to a smouldering wreck of twisted metal. Twenty-three people, including two Australians, died in the crash, health ministry national crisis centre chief Rustam Pakaya said in a late afternoon text message to Reuters. REUTERS/Pentak Lanud Adisucipto/Handout (INDONESIA)

[NormsRevenge]

Indonesian jet bursts into flames upon landing ^
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1796382/posts

[CindyDawg]

someone pulled me up, carried me to the back door and threw me out." Better than 1000 pictures.

[AxelPaulsenJr]

A just released picture of the pilot.

[hsalaw]

Howard, the Australian leader, said he did not believe foul play was involved. "I have not received any advice suggesting it was anything other than a tragic accident,"

I admire John Howard, but isn't it a little early to know?

[kjo]

Clearly, it's Bush's fault.

[naturalman1975]

It's only a partial quote. I'll see if I can track it down in its entirety.

[Tinian]

Paul Harvey said: "it stalled prematurely."

No need for further investigation.

[hsalaw]

Thanks. I am a great admirer of John Howard and his no-nonsense, non-faltering style. We are proud to say that Australia is one of our greatest allies and best friends.

[NormsRevenge]

"It was going into a dive and I was certain we would crash on the ground," he told the Italian news agency ANSA. "I was sitting behind the wing. I saw that the pilot was trying to stop it, but it was too fast. It literarily bounced on the strip."

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I know this pilot or should I say , one or more like him from experience.. bring it in fast and loose.. not sure of meteorological conditions and if it had any effect.. wind shear?

[hsalaw]

See new thread just posted: Jet Sabotage 'Possible': (Aussie) PM (I'm sorry I can't do the link thing.)