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Black box to be opened in RI; Russians not running probe: Officials

Aftermath: JP/P

Bagus BT Saragih (The Jakarta Post)
Jakarta
Tue, May 15, 2012

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Black box to be opened in RI; Russians not running probe: Officials

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span class="inline inline-none">Aftermath:
JP/P.J. Leo

Indonesian and Russian forensic specialists arrive at National Police Sukanto Hospital in Kramat Jati, East Jakarta, on Monday. Remains of the victims of the Sukhoi Superjet 100 have been taken to the hospital for identification.

The flight-data recorder of Sukhoi Superjet 100 that crashed last week will be examined in Indonesia after it is found and brought to the Russian aircraft’s makers only if needed, an official says.

“We will first open the black box here in Indonesia,” National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) chief Tatang Kurniadi told The Jakarta Post on Monday.

“If the investigation shows that we require Russian technology to explore the black box’s data, we will bring it to their country. That is the international procedure,” Tatang said.

Indonesia’s plans for the flight-data recorder, which has not been found as of Monday at press time, have already been discussed with Russian Ambassador to Indonesia Alexander A. Ivanov, Tatang added.

Meanwhile, Air Vice Marshal Daryatmo, the chief of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), said that searchers previously misidentified outdated communications and global-positioning devices found in the plane’s wreckage as its flight-data recorder.

Separately, Yopie Hidayat, the spokesman of Vice President Boediono, said that Indonesian officials would remain in charge of the crash site and the investigation and would limit the activities of the three teams comprised of 68 Russian experts sent after the crash of the Russian-made Sukhoi Superjet 100 near Bogor, West Java, on Wednesday.

The first Russian team would work under Basarnas during the search and recovery operations, a second would help identify victims under the National Police’s disaster victim identification unit and the third would aid the KNKT in the crash investigation, Yopie said.

“All of these teams are under the coordination of relevant institutions of Indonesia,” he told a press conference at Boediono’s office after the Vice President met with representatives from the Russian teams.

Present at the meeting were Boediono, Deputy Transportation Minister Bambang Susantono, and Transportation Ministry air transportation chief Herry Bhakti Gumay.

The Russian participants included Ivanov, Russian Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Yuri Slyusar and Mikhail Pogosyan from the United Aircraft Corporation, which owns Sukhoi Aviation Holding Company, the makers of the ill-fated aircraft.

The 30-minute meeting was closed to the press and the Russians left the building without talking to journalists.

Yopie described the meeting as a courtesy call initiated by the Russians and did not discuss technical issues.

“The Vice President said that both Russia and Indonesia agreed to push for a credible and transparent investigation into the crash as soon as possible,” Yopie said.

“The Vice President also reiterated that good Russian-Indonesian relations will remain [intact] despite the crash,” he added.

Yopie also said the Russians said their teams had not met any difficulties in carrying out their tasks in Indonesia. “They said they were grateful for the good cooperation provided by Indonesian officers in the field.”

On Saturday, two cargo planes carrying the Russian experts and disaster-relief equipment arrived at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in East Jakarta.

The teams comprise rescue and mission specialists and psychologists for the victims’ relatives.

The disaster-relief equipment included a BO-105 helicopter and a BK-117 helicopter, which arrived at Basarnas’ command post in Cijeruk, West Java, on Monday.

Meanwhile, Sr. Comr. Anton Castilani, chief of the National Police’s disaster victim identification unit, aid that he hoped that the victims would be recovered as soon as possible to limit decomposition. “During the investigation, we only place the body parts in refrigerators. We avoid using preservatives because it would complicate the process,” Anton said.

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