Human error speculation over crash<\/p>\n
MEDAN, North Sumatra (JP): As dozens of victims from flight
\nGA-152 were buried yesterday, speculation grew over reports that
\nhuman error may have been to blame for Friday's Garuda Indonesia
\ncrash.<\/p>\n
Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto led a mass
\nburial of 48 coffins near Polonia Airport which was attended by
\nhundreds of mourners.<\/p>\n
Forty four of the coffins contained the remains of
\nunidentified bodies while the other four contained torn and
\ncharred limbs.<\/p>\n
Distraught relatives lined the two-meter deep grave to view
\nthe rows of wooden coffins. Several families, weeping and holding
\nhands, threw flowers from the edge of the site.<\/p>\n
Some were forced to wear surgical masks to block out the
\nstench of the rotting bodies.<\/p>\n
The mass grave is located on the same site as the cemetery for
\n62 people killed in the Garuda F-28 crash in 1979.<\/p>\n
Friday's accident involved a Garuda A-300-B4 carrying 234
\npassengers and crew. The plane crashed just minutes before the
\nMedan-bound plane was due to land at Polonia Airport. There were
\nno survivors.<\/p>\n
While the investigation into the accident continues,
\nspeculation was rife about the role of human error yesterday
\nafter press reports said that air traffic control at Polonia
\nmight have made a mistake in guiding the plane.<\/p>\n
Kompas daily reported that the safe flying altitude for the
\nmountainous region was 7,500 feet (2,270 meters). According to
\nthe daily the control tower had instructed the pilot to descend
\nto 2,000 feet (606 meters).<\/p>\n
Based on its research and data, Kompas said "human factor may
\nhave played a role in the accident".<\/p>\n
These speculations were fueled by a widely circulated copy of
\nthe last conversation between the control tower and the GA-152
\npilot minutes before the crash.<\/p>\n
The transcript supports the suggestion that there was some
\nconfusion between the pilot and the Polonia control tower.<\/p>\n
Just before the plane crashed the pilot gave a loud shriek and
\nshouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is great).<\/p>\n
S.M. Nababan, chairman of the Garuda Pilots' Communication
\nForum, when asked to comment on the credibility of the
\ntranscript, said he would wait for an official announcement from
\nthe government.<\/p>\n
"But if the conversation (in the transcript) did occur, it
\nmeans that Rachmo was doing the correct thing as he followed the
\nair traffic controller's instructions," he said after attending
\nthe funeral of pilot Rachmo Wiyogo.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Transportation's director general for air
\ncommunication, Zainuddin Sikado, was not available for comment
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
An official at Polonia's air traffic control, Rivai, told The
\nJakarta Post that there had not been an official report on the
\nmatter.<\/p>\n
Minister Haryanto in Medan yesterday refused to answer
\njournalists' questions yesterday. He also refused to comment on
\nthe whereabouts of the air traffic controller who was responsible
\nfor guiding flight GA-152 onto the runway.<\/p>\n
As of yesterday afternoon the flight data recorder and voice
\ncockpit recorder, known as the black box, has not been found.<\/p>\n
Pilot<\/p>\n
Relatives and friends of pilot Capt. Rachmo Wiyogo flocked to
\nhis funeral at Tanah Kusir Cemetery, South Jakarta, yesterday
\nmorning.<\/p>\n
The pilot's wife, Retiana, wore a black veil and managed to
\nhold back her tears during the ceremony. Rachmo's two sons, Alvin
\nFardian, 12, and Aldri Rehardian, 7, also attended the funeral.<\/p>\n
In another part of the cemetery, passenger Iman S. Sulwan was
\nalso buried. Iman worked at Bank Niaga's Fatwamati branch.<\/p>\n
Rachmo and Iman's bodies were among the 54 flown into Jakarta
\nSunday evening.<\/p>\n
After the funeral yesterday, Retiana said that Rachmo and his
\nmother planned to take an umrah, minor pilgrimage, on Oct. 10.<\/p>\n
"He was trying out the umrah's white clothes a day before the
\ncrash," she recalled. Rachmo's pilgrimage clothes were buried
\nwith him yesterday.<\/p>\n
Rachmo was an experienced pilot with 20,000 hours flying time.
\nHe has worked for Garuda Indonesia for almost 20 years and began
\nflying Airbus-300s in 1993.<\/p>\n
Separately, the body of the flight's purser, Solich Sunarya,
\n44, was flown to Jakarta yesterday. (10\/21\/jun)<\/p>\n
Foreigners -- Page 2<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/human-error-speculation-over-crash-1447893297", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }