SYDNEY: An Indonesian jet that crash-landed last month killing 21 people was travelling nearly twice as fast as normal when it hit the runway, Australian media quoted a confidential report as saying on Saturday.

The Sydney Morning Herald said it had obtained a copy of the initial Indonesian report that pointed to pilot error as the main cause of the crash, and also claimed Jakarta authorities were trying to suppress the report.

The Garuda Indonesia Boeing 737 slammed hard onto the runway in Yogyakarta on March 7, careened off the end of the air strip and then burst into flames, killing 21 of the 102 passengers, including five Australians.

The report found the jet was travelling at 410 kilometres (255 miles) an hour, almost double the recommended speed, and that Yogyakarta's runway was only a quarter of the 240-metre length recommended under international aviation standards.

Among the other findings of the report were that cockpit data recordings revealed no mechanical problems before the landing but that pilots reported a fault in the reverse thrust of one of the engines shortly before take-off.

In addition, the weather was calm, contradicting the pilot's reported claims of a massive down draught, and there is no evidence of the pilots arguing in the cockpit before the crash, the report said.

The report, which contained no analysis, also said that emergency vehicles and fire engines could not reach the crash site quickly and were not properly equipped when they did.

The Sydney Morning Herald also claimed that Indonesian authorities were trying to suppress the report which could be damaging to its aviation security reputation, going so far as to put pressure on Australia to threaten families of the victims with prison if they leak the report.

"The Indonesian Transport Minister, Hatta Radjasa, has tried to block the release of the 'preliminary factual aircraft accident report', insisting that Australian authorities should threaten the families of the five Australian victims with up to two years' jail if they disseminate it," the paper said.

The Garuda crash was the second airliner disaster in Indonesia this year. An Adam Air plane plunged into the sea off the island of Sulawesi on New Year's Day, killing all 102 on board.

Indonesia's government is trying to improve the country's transport safety record following a string of deadly plane and ferry disasters.


- AFP/so