CVR hoped to reveal cause of Boeing crash
CVR hoped to reveal cause of Boeing crash
Tarko Sudarno, The Jakarta Post, Klaten
A team of investigators and PT Garuda Indonesia Airlines are
expected to unravel the mystery behind the Boeing 737 crash-
landing here following the recovery of the plane's cockpit voice
recorder (CVR) on Monday.
The flight data recorder (FDR) was recovered on the day of the
crash, Wednesday, Jan. 16, and therefore a full investigation
into the case is underway, said Agus Sudaryo, chief of the Garuda
Technical Team.
The voice recorder was found at 10:35 a.m. on Monday, some 500
meters from where the aircraft crash-landed, by a team from the
Navy plus several teams under the National Commission on
Transportation Safety.
On Monday, a crane was used to drag the plane onto the
riverbank. As soon as investigators give clearance, the Boeing
737 will be disassembled into various parts: tail, cockpit, mid-
section and wings.
Agus further said that even though a full investigation was
underway, it would take months to reach a conclusion as to why
the plane crash-landed because the delicate process -- such as
analyzing the contents of the voice recorder and FDR as well as
pilot and witness accounts plus other evidence -- had to be
conducted carefully.
"From the FDR we will find out the plane's altitude during the
incident, the weather, engine condition and the pilot's actions
before the crash. While from CVR we will gather communication
from the cockpit to the nearest tower and conversation between
crew," the officer said.
He said that previously the team was hesitant to use its
detector to locate the black box since it was possible that the
magnetic effect from the detector could damage the recording.
"But then we decided to use the detector before the strong
current of Bengawan Solo River could sweep away the CVR," he
said.
The officer further said that Garuda fully supported the
investigation.
A flight attendant, Santi Anggraeni, died and at least 32
passengers were injured when the aircraft made an emergency
landing into the Bengawan Solo river in Klaten regency, Central
Java, in bad weather.
Ten members of the Amphibian Unit of the Navy's Eastern Fleet
had been trying to locate the black box since Saturday.
Meanwhile, the aircraft's two engines have been removed from
the plane and transported to Adisumarmo Airport in the Central
Java city of Surakarta.
The Boeing 737 aircraft was carrying 54 passengers and six
crew members. It took off from Mataram, West Nusa Tenggara, and
was approaching Yogyakarta when the accident occurred.
It was the second accident in three days involving a Boeing
737 in Indonesia. On Jan. 14, several people were slightly
injured when a 737 operated by Lion Airlines crashed during an
aborted takeoff from Pekanbaru in Riau province.