Crashed Indonesian plane had imbalance in engine thrust: Preliminary report

On Wednesday, February 10, Indonesian investigators said that the  Sriwijaya Air plane crash that killed 62 people last month was caused due to a malfunctioning automatic throttle. According to the reports by AP, the National Transportation Safety Committee investigators said that they are still struggling to find why the jet ‘nose dived’ into water. However, they have issued a report that explained the pilot’s struggles. 

Nurcahyo Utomo, who is the lead investigator said that the left engine’s throttle lever moved backward on its own while the autopilot was engaged. This reduced the output of that engine before the jet plunged into the sea. He also said that the pilots of previous flights had reported problems with the automatic throttle system. Utomo revealed that the pilot’s last conversation with air traffic control was about 4 minutes after takeoff. This is when the crew responded and instructed to go up to 13,000 feet. 

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'It's an anomaly' 

The plane’s flight data recorder showed the plane reached an altitude of 10,900 feet and then began declining. According to the reports by AP, Utomo said, “So far, we don’t know if the engine’s throttle was broken or not, but it’s an anomaly since the left throttle moved far back and the right did not”. He said that the pilot fought to bring up the plane but it rolled onto its left side. 

Earlier, the search team had retrieved one of the two black boxes of the crashed Sriwijaya Air's flight 182. The flight data recorder (FDR) of the plane was also recovered. The 4,132 search and rescue personnel were supported by 14 aeroplanes, 62 ships and 21 rafts boats. The team was using an underwater metal detector and remotely operated vehicle to find human remains, the plane’s cockpit voice recorder and more wreckage. The plane carried 62 people and families provided DNA samples to identify victims. 

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The chairman of the safety committee, Soerjanto Tjahjono said, “I am not satisfied that this accident could be that simple. Other factors must have come into play”. He added, “Pilots are trained to notice this and prevent loss of control”. The disaster raised various concerns about safety in Indonesia’s aviation industry.

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(Image Credits: AP)