Pilots of crash plane grounded

The pilot and co-pilot of the Garuda aircraft that crashed in the Central Java town of Klaten last week have been declared unfit to fly pending a series of recovery tests, an official says.

Garuda's vice president corporate communications Pujobroto told a press conference on Thursday that the two airmen, captain Abdul Rozag and co-pilot Heryadi Gunawan, would have to regain both their mental fitness and skills before returning to the cockpit.

Pujobroto said he was unsure about how long the temporary lay- off would last, but Rozag said it would take him two weeks to fully recover.

"I will have to undergo a flight test again, although my license remains valid," Rozag, who also attended the media conference, said.

With both engines having failed, the Boeing 737-300 aircraft, flight number GA-421, crash-landed in the Bengawan Solo river last Wednesday in bad weather en route to Yogyakarta from Ampenan in West Nusa Tenggara. One of the female flight attendants, Santi Anggraeni, was killed and 22 people were injured in the accident.

Minister of Transportation Agum Gumelar has promised rewards to the pilot and copilot for their courage, but Pujobroto said he did not know anything about this. -- Antara