Sunday, March 14, 2010
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
New push to jail pilot in Yogyakarta crash
TOM ALLARD
SMH January 12, 2010
PROSECUTORS will try to get the conviction and prison sentence reinstated for the Garuda pilot at the controls of a plane that crashed at Yogyakarta's airport, killing 21 people, including five Australians.
Australian embassy officials in Jakarta confirmed the fresh appeal yesterday but declined to comment on whether it was the result of pressure from Australia.
Marwoto Komar originally received a two-year sentence last April after being found guilty of criminal negligence.
He successfully appealed against the verdict last month, which caused outrage from the families of the victims, including Australian Financial Review journalist Morgan Mellish, federal police officers Brice Steele and Mark Scott, AusAID official Alison Sudrajat and diplomat Liz O'Neill.
''I'm really surprised. I thought the case was done and dusted,'' said Caroline Mellish, the sister of Morgan Mellish, yesterday.
She said pursuing Captain Marwoto was important to ensure the spotlight was shed on Indonesian air safety standards, as much as justice for those badly injured in the accident and the loved ones of those who died.
''You would hope other pilots would think twice about their actions and that Garuda itself would take some responsibility.''
Immediately before the crash in 2007, Captain Marwoto ignored 15 automated warnings to abort the landing as the jet approached the runway at twice the recommended speed.
At first he said poor weather was responsible for the incident but changed his story to blame mechanical problems.
The initial guilty verdict found fault with him for not alerting airport authorities and fire crews about an impending disaster.
The Boeing 737 slammed into the runway and skidded into a rice field before exploding.
Captain Marwoto's successful appeal meant he was allowed to fly again although Garuda said he would not be reinstated.
SMH January 12, 2010
PROSECUTORS will try to get the conviction and prison sentence reinstated for the Garuda pilot at the controls of a plane that crashed at Yogyakarta's airport, killing 21 people, including five Australians.
Australian embassy officials in Jakarta confirmed the fresh appeal yesterday but declined to comment on whether it was the result of pressure from Australia.
Marwoto Komar originally received a two-year sentence last April after being found guilty of criminal negligence.
He successfully appealed against the verdict last month, which caused outrage from the families of the victims, including Australian Financial Review journalist Morgan Mellish, federal police officers Brice Steele and Mark Scott, AusAID official Alison Sudrajat and diplomat Liz O'Neill.
''I'm really surprised. I thought the case was done and dusted,'' said Caroline Mellish, the sister of Morgan Mellish, yesterday.
She said pursuing Captain Marwoto was important to ensure the spotlight was shed on Indonesian air safety standards, as much as justice for those badly injured in the accident and the loved ones of those who died.
''You would hope other pilots would think twice about their actions and that Garuda itself would take some responsibility.''
Immediately before the crash in 2007, Captain Marwoto ignored 15 automated warnings to abort the landing as the jet approached the runway at twice the recommended speed.
At first he said poor weather was responsible for the incident but changed his story to blame mechanical problems.
The initial guilty verdict found fault with him for not alerting airport authorities and fire crews about an impending disaster.
The Boeing 737 slammed into the runway and skidded into a rice field before exploding.
Captain Marwoto's successful appeal meant he was allowed to fly again although Garuda said he would not be reinstated.
Monday, January 11, 2010
Appeal lodged after fatal Garuda pilot acquitted
From correspondents in Jakarta: AAP
January 11, 2010 4:17PM
INDONESIAN prosecutors have lodged their appeal against a court's decision to quash the conviction of the Garuda pilot whose plane crashed, killing 21 people, including five Australians.
Marwoto Komar was found guilty of criminal negligence and sentenced to two years' jail over the 2007 crash at Yogyakarta airport.
But the Yogyakarta High Court last month overturned Mr Komar's conviction and ordered he be released from all charges.
Prosecutors have now appealed to Indonesia's Supreme Court in a bid to have the pilot's conviction and jail term reinstated.
Mr Komar was flying a Boeing 737 which slammed onto the runway at Yogyakarta airport, careered into a field and exploded in flames on March 7, 2007.
Five Australians were killed in the crash: diplomat Liz O'Neill, AusAID official Allison Sudradjat, Australian Federal Police officers Brice Steele and Mark Scott, and Australian Financial Review journalist Morgan Mellish.
Investigators have argued Mr Komar ignored a series of warnings not to land the plane as he brought it in at about twice the safe speed.
Mr Komar has blamed the disaster on mechanical problems.
January 11, 2010 4:17PM
INDONESIAN prosecutors have lodged their appeal against a court's decision to quash the conviction of the Garuda pilot whose plane crashed, killing 21 people, including five Australians.
Marwoto Komar was found guilty of criminal negligence and sentenced to two years' jail over the 2007 crash at Yogyakarta airport.
But the Yogyakarta High Court last month overturned Mr Komar's conviction and ordered he be released from all charges.
Prosecutors have now appealed to Indonesia's Supreme Court in a bid to have the pilot's conviction and jail term reinstated.
Mr Komar was flying a Boeing 737 which slammed onto the runway at Yogyakarta airport, careered into a field and exploded in flames on March 7, 2007.
Five Australians were killed in the crash: diplomat Liz O'Neill, AusAID official Allison Sudradjat, Australian Federal Police officers Brice Steele and Mark Scott, and Australian Financial Review journalist Morgan Mellish.
Investigators have argued Mr Komar ignored a series of warnings not to land the plane as he brought it in at about twice the safe speed.
Mr Komar has blamed the disaster on mechanical problems.
Indonesia prosecutors appeal Garuda pilot acquittal
Mon Jan 11, 3:46 am
JAKARTA (AFP)
Indonesian prosecutors have appealed against a court's decision to overturn the conviction of a Garuda Indonesia pilot who crashed a passenger jet, killing 21 people, a spokesman said Monday.
The high court last month quashed an earlier two-year prison sentence against 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 prosecutors office spokesman Fora Noenoehitoe told AFP.
"We maintain our position that he should be jailed."
The plane hit the tarmac at twice the recommended landing speed and speared into neighbouring rice fields before bursting into flames.
Komar says 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 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.
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.
JAKARTA (AFP)
Indonesian prosecutors have appealed against a court's decision to overturn the conviction of a Garuda Indonesia pilot who crashed a passenger jet, killing 21 people, a spokesman said Monday.
The high court last month quashed an earlier two-year prison sentence against 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 prosecutors office spokesman Fora Noenoehitoe told AFP.
"We maintain our position that he should be jailed."
The plane hit the tarmac at twice the recommended landing speed and speared into neighbouring rice fields before bursting into flames.
Komar says 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 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.
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.
Saturday, December 26, 2009
Three Years
♥♥ When your brother dies, your childhood fades,there being one less person to remember it with...
It's like losing your computer and there's no back-up ♥♥
Garrison Keillor
Monday, December 14, 2009
Garuda wont reinstate pilot cleared of negligence
ROD MCGUIRK
SMH December 14, 2009
JAKARTA: National carrier Garuda Indonesia has ruled out reinstating a pilot despite an appeal court overturning his conviction for causing a crash landing in 2007 that killed 21.
The High Court of Yogyakarta quashed Captain Marwoto Komar's conviction for negligence in the fiery crash of a Boeing 737-400 airliner at Yogyakarta airport on March 7, 2007, lawyers said last week.
Komar was sentenced in April to two years in prison, half the sentence that prosecutors had asked for.
Garuda said Komar, a career pilot for 22 years, resigned after an initial accident investigation that found he ignored 15 automated warnings and calls by his co-pilot to circle around the airport again.
"He has not been employed by the company since then and we do not expect this situation to change," Garuda said in a statement.
"We wish to reassure everyone that the incident of March 2007 has not been in vain as the airline has since invested heavily in pilot training and safety."
Komar was initially charged with deliberately crashing the plane. He approached the airport too fast and the airliner careered off the runway into a rice paddy where it burst into flames.
Komar blamed mechanical problems. He told the court during the lengthy trial he knew the plane was coming in too steeply but when he turned off the automatic pilot and tried to pull up the nose manually it did not respond.
Five Australians were among the 21 killed. One hundred and twenty people survived the crash.
Indonesia has one of Asia's worst aviation records and Garuda's planes were until recently blacklisted from landing in the European Union. Experts say poor maintenance, rule-bending and a shortage of properly trained pilots may be to blame.
AP
SMH December 14, 2009
JAKARTA: National carrier Garuda Indonesia has ruled out reinstating a pilot despite an appeal court overturning his conviction for causing a crash landing in 2007 that killed 21.
The High Court of Yogyakarta quashed Captain Marwoto Komar's conviction for negligence in the fiery crash of a Boeing 737-400 airliner at Yogyakarta airport on March 7, 2007, lawyers said last week.
Komar was sentenced in April to two years in prison, half the sentence that prosecutors had asked for.
Garuda said Komar, a career pilot for 22 years, resigned after an initial accident investigation that found he ignored 15 automated warnings and calls by his co-pilot to circle around the airport again.
"He has not been employed by the company since then and we do not expect this situation to change," Garuda said in a statement.
"We wish to reassure everyone that the incident of March 2007 has not been in vain as the airline has since invested heavily in pilot training and safety."
Komar was initially charged with deliberately crashing the plane. He approached the airport too fast and the airliner careered off the runway into a rice paddy where it burst into flames.
Komar blamed mechanical problems. He told the court during the lengthy trial he knew the plane was coming in too steeply but when he turned off the automatic pilot and tried to pull up the nose manually it did not respond.
Five Australians were among the 21 killed. One hundred and twenty people survived the crash.
Indonesia has one of Asia's worst aviation records and Garuda's planes were until recently blacklisted from landing in the European Union. Experts say poor maintenance, rule-bending and a shortage of properly trained pilots may be to blame.
AP
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