Editorial: Praying for a Miracle; And Some Answers
Unfortunately, I feel that the pilot will probably end up getting blamed for this tragedy. The aircraft maker and the control tower/ organizers have too much to lose and the "dead" pilot makes an easy scapegoat.
From what I've heard, pilots that are not experienced for this area should not be going anywhere near the Salak mountains unless they are at a safe altitude, which is significantly higher than the 6,000 feet for which the Sukhoi pilot had apparently been cleared. I'm not sure if anyone had sat down to carefully explain to the pilots about the risks of flying too low around Mt Salak (which should have been done by the organizers and the authorities). There are no media reports of the pilots informing the ground control of any emergency on-board (assuming they had enough time), so as I mentioned the pilot will probably get blamed. However, even if it is proven to be the case, the ground control and organizers should also look at what they could have done better to avoid this tragedy.
I admit that at this stage, there are no results from the investigation, but let's not underestimate the "political" nature of aircraft accident investigations.
As we come to terms with the tragedy of the Sukhoi crash, the immediate priority is to reach the wreckage and find any survivors. It may take a miracle but the rescuers must not give up.
The Sukhoi Superjet 100 that went down in the mountains in Bogor lost all radio contact on Wednesday afternoon, about 50 minutes after it took off from Halim Perdanakusuma Airport in what was supposed to be a second showcase flight.
The 45 people confirmed to have been on board, including airline representatives and journalists, have yet to be found and we fear the worst.
There will of course be questions as to what happened and what caused the Sukhoi to go down. For example, why did the pilot ask to descend from above 10,000 feet to 6,000 feet and why did the authorities allow the plane to do so in a mountainous area where the peaks reach 7,000 feet at their highest point?
To find the answers, a full investigation will have to be conducted with no stone left unturned. There cannot be a cover-up of any kind if public trust in the authorities and the system is to be maintained.
Indonesia’s Transportation Ministry has been quick to say that the Sukhoi had secured the documents required for the demonstration flight, but Russian investigators immediately opened a criminal probe into possible misconduct during the flight preparations.
Who is to blame for this tragedy is not an issue at the moment. But if any party is found to be at fault, they should be severely dealt with. According to media reports, Wednesday’s incident was the sixth accident on and around Mount Salak since 2003. Why the area was chosen for the demonstration flight also remains to be explained.
We urge the authorities to move quickly to answer these questions.
ADJKT
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