Prosecutors Appeal Garuda Pilot’s Acquittal

Prosecutors have appealed a court’s decision to overturn the conviction of a Garuda Indonesia pilot who crashed a passenger jet, killing 21 people, a spokesman said on Monday.

The High Court last month threw out an two-year prison sentence imposed on pilot Marwoto Komar, saying he “tried his best” to save the Boeing 737, which crashed on landing in Yogyakarta, Central Java, in 2007.

“There’s an error in interpretation of the law by the High Court. By freeing him it’s like saying the incident never took place,” Yogyakarta prosecutor’s office spokesman Fora Noenoehitoe said. “We maintain our position that he should be jailed.”

The plane hit the tarmac at twice the recommended landing speed and speared into neighboring rice fields before bursting into flames.

Komar said faulty wing flaps were to blame for the jet’s excessive airspeed as it came in to land. He also blamed the condition of the runway and poor safety standards at Yogyakarta’s Adisucipto Airport for the number of casualties. A safety investigation report, however, found he had ignored 15 automatic warnings that his approach speed was too fast.

Five Australians — a diplomat, an aid official, two police officers and a journalist who were following then-Australian foreign minister Alexander Downer on an official visit — were among the dead. Some 118 passengers and crew survived.

The European Union banned all Indonesian airlines from its airspace in June 2007 due to safety concerns after a spate of accidents. The ban was lifted in July 2009 for four airlines, including Garuda.

Komar has said he plans to return to flying for Garuda, the national carrier which is hoping to raise hundreds of millions of dollars in a public share offering this year.

But the airline ruled out reinstating him as a pilot in December, shortly after his acquittal. “He has not been employed by the company since then and we do not expect this situation to change,” Garuda said .



AFP, AP

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