Garuda Airliner Landed At 230 Knots

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Crash investigators in Indonesia say the Garuda Airlines Boeing 737-400 that overran a runway, resulting in 21 deaths on March 7, was going about 230 knots when it touched down, close to double the normal landing speed. The airliner caught fire after running off the end of Yogyakarta Airport’s runway, but 119 people, including the flight crew, survived. According to the Australia Herald Sun, the report, which it says Indonesian officials are trying to suppress, conflicts sharply with the claims of the crew, Captain Marwoto Komar and his copilot Gagam Rohman, who could be facing charges. The Herald Sun said the crew indicated they had problems with a thrust reverser before taking off, but the flight data recorder so far shows no mechanical faults with the plane. Komar also said the plane was hit by a downdraft, but winds were calm at the time of the accident, according to the newspaper. There were earlier reports that the two pilots argued over flap settings and whether to go around, but those claims have been denied by a top investigator.

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