The Sriwijaya Air plane that crashed last month killing 62 people had an imbalance in engine thrust that eventually led the plane into a sharp roll and then a final dive into the sea, a preliminary report by investigators said on Wednesday.

The 26-year-old plane,&nbsp;previously flown by US-based Continental Airlines and United Airlines,&nbsp;plunged around 10,000 feet (3,000 metres) and crashed into waters off Jakarta just minutes after takeoff.

On Wednesday, investigators said they were probing the autothrottle system as they published their interim report.

"The left (engine throttle) was moving backward too far while the right one was not moving at all -- it was stuck," said National Transportation Safety Committee investigator Nurcahyo Utomo.

"But what would have caused this anomaly? We can't conclude anything just yet."

Authorities have previously said the crew did not declare an emergency or report technical problems with the aircraft before its dive, and that it was probably intact when it hit the water.

They cited a relatively small area where the wreckage was scattered and details from a retrieved flight data recorder, one of two so-called "black boxes", showing the engine was still running just before it crashed.

Communications with air traffic control were described as normal up until the moment that the plane sharply deviated from its intended course and crashed.

At about 10,900 feet, the autopilot disengaged and the plane rolled to the left more than 45 degrees and started its dive, according to the report.

The Sriwijaya accident is Indonesia's third major airline crash in just over six years and has shone a spotlight on the country's poor air safety record.

Starting with just one plane in 2003, Sriwijaya has become the country's number three&nbsp;airline group, aided by its strategy of acquiring old planes at cheap prices and serving routes neglected by competitors.

There had been two prior problems reported with the autothrottle system that automatically controls engine power based on maintenance logs, but the issue was rectified on Jan. 5, four days before the crash, KNKT said.

A working autothrottle is not required for a plane to be dispatched as pilots can control the thrust levers manually with their hands.

Divers are still searching for the plane's cockpit voice recorder which could help investigators understand the actions taken by the pilots, both of whom were experienced with 17,900 hours for the captain and 5,100 hours for the first officer.

The report highlighted the importance of upset recovery training for pilots and the recognition of repetitive plane defects, just over six years after an AirAsia Indonesia crash where those were among the issues raised.

KNKT said that following the crash Sriwijaya had taken safety actions including adding upset recovery training in its next pilot proficiency check and reminding engineers that repetitive defects must be handled in accordance with safety manuals.

The airline sent a memo to pilots reminding them to write detailed reports to help engineers troubleshoot problems.

The Directorate General of Civil Aviation also discussed the handling of repetitive problems and upset prevention and recovery training with other Indonesian operators after the crash, KNKT said.

Boeing said it would continue to support the investigation.

The preliminary report, as is standard, laid out factual information obtained to date but did not list the contributing factors to the crash. That will require further investigation.

Safety experts say most air accidents are caused by a combination of factors that can take months to establish. Under international standards, the final report is due within a year of the crash.

The Sriwijaya Air plane that crashed last month killing 62 people had an imbalance in engine thrust that eventually led the plane into a sharp roll and then a final dive into the sea, a preliminary report by investigators said on Wednesday.

The Sriwijaya Air plane that crashed last month killing 62 people had an imbalance in engine thrust that eventually led the plane into a sharp roll and then a final dive into the sea, a preliminary report by investigators said on Wednesday. The 26-year-old plane, previously flown by US-based Continental Airlines and United Airlines, plunged around 10,000 feet (3,000 metres) and crashed into waters off Jakarta just minutes after takeoff. On Wednesday, investigators said they were probing the autothrottle system as they published their interim report. "The left (engine throttle) was moving backward too far while the right one was not moving at all -- it was stuck," said National Transportation Safety Committee investigator Nurcahyo Utomo. "But what would have caused this anomaly? We can't conclude anything just yet." Authorities have previously said the crew did not declare an emergency or report technical problems with the aircraft before its dive, and that it was probably intact when it hit the water. They cited a relatively small area where the wreckage was scattered and details from a retrieved flight data recorder, one of two so-called "black boxes", showing the engine was still running just before it crashed. Communications with air traffic control were described as normal up until the moment that the plane sharply deviated from its intended course and crashed. At about 10,900 feet, the autopilot disengaged and the plane rolled to the left more than 45 degrees and started its dive, according to the report. The Sriwijaya accident is Indonesia's third major airline crash in just over six years and has shone a spotlight on the country's poor air safety record. Starting with just one plane in 2003, Sriwijaya has become the country's number three airline group, aided by its strategy of acquiring old planes at cheap prices and serving routes neglected by competitors. There had been two prior problems reported with the autothrottle system that automatically controls engine power based on maintenance logs, but the issue was rectified on Jan. 5, four days before the crash, KNKT said. A working autothrottle is not required for a plane to be dispatched as pilots can control the thrust levers manually with their hands. Divers are still searching for the plane's cockpit voice recorder which could help investigators understand the actions taken by the pilots, both of whom were experienced with 17,900 hours for the captain and 5,100 hours for the first officer. The report highlighted the importance of upset recovery training for pilots and the recognition of repetitive plane defects, just over six years after an AirAsia Indonesia crash where those were among the issues raised. KNKT said that following the crash Sriwijaya had taken safety actions including adding upset recovery training in its next pilot proficiency check and reminding engineers that repetitive defects must be handled in accordance with safety manuals. The airline sent a memo to pilots reminding them to write detailed reports to help engineers troubleshoot problems. The Directorate General of Civil Aviation also discussed the handling of repetitive problems and upset prevention and recovery training with other Indonesian operators after the crash, KNKT said. Boeing said it would continue to support the investigation. The preliminary report, as is standard, laid out factual information obtained to date but did not list the contributing factors to the crash. That will require further investigation. Safety experts say most air accidents are caused by a combination of factors that can take months to establish. Under international standards, the final report is due within a year of the crash.

Crashed Indonesian Sriwijaya Air jet had engine thrust imbalance

A Boeing 737 passenger plane of Indonesia's Sriwijaya Air&nbsp;crashed into the sea on Saturday minutes after taking off from&nbsp;Indonesia's capital Jakarta on a domestic flight with 62 people on board, and their fate was not known.

Indonesian investigators said Sunday they had detected a signal from the&nbsp;Boeing passenger plane and&nbsp;found body parts off the coast of the capital Jakarta where a budget airline plane with 62 people on board crashed shortly after takeoff.

"As of this morning, we've received two (body) bags, one with passenger belongings and the other with body parts," Jakarta police spokesman Yusri Yunus told Metro TV.

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/indonesia-sriwijaya-air-boeing-737-goes-missing-feared-to-have-crashed-355610" hreflang="en">Indonesia: Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737 goes missing, feared to have crashed</a>

The Boeing 737-500, en route to Pontianak in West Kalimantan, disappeared from radar screens after taking off just after 2.30 p.m. (0730 GMT) - 30 minutes after the scheduled time because of heavy rain.

Indonesian Transport Minister Budi Karya told a news conference that 62 people had been aboard Flight SJ 182, including 12 crew. The detik.com website quoted him as saying the plane crashed near Laki Island, some 20 km (12 miles) from the airport.

Rescue agency Basarnas said in a statement it would send a team to the Thousand Islands area to help in the search for victims "after the crash of Sriwijaya Air SJ 182".

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All those on board were&nbsp;Indonesian,&nbsp;Indonesia's transport safety committee said.

Indonesia's Navy had pinpointed the site of the missing aircraft and ships had been sent there, a Navy official said. Authorities did not say whether they believed there were survivors.

Indonesian airline Sriwijaya Air's chief executive, Jefferson Irwin Jauwena, told a news conference that the plane had been in good condition before the flight.

The nearly 27-year-old Boeing 737-500 was much older than Boeing's problem-plagued 737 MAX model, one of which crashed off Jakarta in late 2018, killing all 189 people aboard the Lion Air flight. Older 737 models are widely flown and do not have the system implicated in the MAX safety crisis.

A Boeing spokeswoman said, "We are aware of media reports from Jakarta, and are closely monitoring the situation. We are working to gather more information".

Reliable tracking service Flightradar24 said the Boeing jet took off at 2:36 p.m. local time (0736 GMT) and climbed to reach 10,900 feet within four minutes. It then began a steep descent and stopped transmitting data 21 seconds later.

A transport ministry spokeswoman said air traffic control at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport had asked the pilot why the plane was heading northwest instead of on its expected flight path just seconds before it disappeared.

There were no immediate clues on what may have caused the sudden descent and safety experts to stress most air accidents are caused by a cocktail of factors that can take months to establish.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the unfortunate plane crash in Indonesia.

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Deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the unfortunate plane crash in Indonesia. India stands with Indonesia in this hour of grief.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) <a href="https://twitter.com/narendramodi/status/1348181997705850881?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 10, 2021</a></blockquote>
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Distraught relatives

Indonesian television channels showed pictures of suspected wreckage.

"We found some cables, a piece of jeans, and pieces of metal on the water," Zulkifli, a security official said.

Distraught relatives waited at Pontianak, around 740 km (460 miles) from Jakarta.

Yaman Zai, a father of three children who were aboard the plane with their mother, said that he was at the airport in Pontianak waiting for them when he heard the news.

"I will never meet her again," he said, holding up a photo of his oldest daughter.

Indonesia's KNKT safety agency was expected to launch an immediate investigation. The US&nbsp;National Safety Transportation Board will automatically be part of the probe since the plane was designed and built in the United States.

Founded in 2003, Jakarta-based Sriwijaya Air group flies largely within&nbsp;Indonesia. The airline has a solid safety record until now, with no onboard casualties in four incidents recorded on the Aviation Safety Network database.

Indonesia's patchy safety record

The Boeing 737 is the world's most-sold family of aircraft and has undergone several makeovers since it entered service in 1968.

The 737-500 is two generations of development before the most recent 737 MAX, which has been embroiled in a worldwide safety crisis following crashes in&nbsp;Indonesia&nbsp;and Ethiopia. It does not use the software system implicated in those crashes.

Nonetheless, experts say planes such as Sriwijaya's leased 737-500 are being phased out for newer fuel-saving models. Civil jets typically have an economic life of 25 years, meaning they become too expensive to keep flying beyond that compared to younger models, but they are built to last longer.

Indonesia&nbsp;itself has a patchy air safety record.

In 2007, the European Union banned all&nbsp;Indonesian airlines following a series of crashes and reports of deteriorating oversight and maintenance since deregulation in the late 1990s. The restrictions were fully lifted in 2018.

Between 2007 and 2016, the US&nbsp;Federal Aviation Administration lowered its&nbsp;Indonesia&nbsp;safety evaluation to Category 2, meaning its regulatory system was inadequate.

Indonesian officials say they have worked hard to bring a safety up to international standards.

A Boeing 737 passenger plane of Indonesia's Sriwijaya Air crashed into the sea on Saturday minutes after taking off from Indonesia's capital Jakarta on a domestic flight with 62 people on board, and their fate was not known.

A Boeing 737 passenger plane of Indonesia's Sriwijaya Air crashed into the sea on Saturday minutes after taking off from Indonesia's capital Jakarta on a domestic flight with 62 people on board, and their fate was not known. Indonesian investigators said Sunday they had detected a signal from the Boeing passenger plane and found body parts off the coast of the capital Jakarta where a budget airline plane with 62 people on board crashed shortly after takeoff. "As of this morning, we've received two (body) bags, one with passenger belongings and the other with body parts," Jakarta police spokesman Yusri Yunus told Metro TV. Also read: Indonesia: Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737 goes missing, feared to have crashed The Boeing 737-500, en route to Pontianak in West Kalimantan, disappeared from radar screens after taking off just after 2.30 p.m. (0730 GMT) - 30 minutes after the scheduled time because of heavy rain. Indonesian Transport Minister Budi Karya told a news conference that 62 people had been aboard Flight SJ 182, including 12 crew. The detik.com website quoted him as saying the plane crashed near Laki Island, some 20 km (12 miles) from the airport. Rescue agency Basarnas said in a statement it would send a team to the Thousand Islands area to help in the search for victims "after the crash of Sriwijaya Air SJ 182". All those on board were Indonesian, Indonesia's transport safety committee said. Indonesia's Navy had pinpointed the site of the missing aircraft and ships had been sent there, a Navy official said. Authorities did not say whether they believed there were survivors. Indonesian airline Sriwijaya Air's chief executive, Jefferson Irwin Jauwena, told a news conference that the plane had been in good condition before the flight. The nearly 27-year-old Boeing 737-500 was much older than Boeing's problem-plagued 737 MAX model, one of which crashed off Jakarta in late 2018, killing all 189 people aboard the Lion Air flight. Older 737 models are widely flown and do not have the system implicated in the MAX safety crisis. A Boeing spokeswoman said, "We are aware of media reports from Jakarta, and are closely monitoring the situation. We are working to gather more information". Reliable tracking service Flightradar24 said the Boeing jet took off at 2:36 p.m. local time (0736 GMT) and climbed to reach 10,900 feet within four minutes. It then began a steep descent and stopped transmitting data 21 seconds later. A transport ministry spokeswoman said air traffic control at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport had asked the pilot why the plane was heading northwest instead of on its expected flight path just seconds before it disappeared. There were no immediate clues on what may have caused the sudden descent and safety experts to stress most air accidents are caused by a cocktail of factors that can take months to establish. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi expressed his condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the unfortunate plane crash in Indonesia. Deepest condolences to the families of those who lost their lives in the unfortunate plane crash in Indonesia. India stands with Indonesia in this hour of grief. — Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) January 10, 2021 × Distraught relatives Indonesian television channels showed pictures of suspected wreckage. "We found some cables, a piece of jeans, and pieces of metal on the water," Zulkifli, a security official said. Distraught relatives waited at Pontianak, around 740 km (460 miles) from Jakarta. Yaman Zai, a father of three children who were aboard the plane with their mother, said that he was at the airport in Pontianak waiting for them when he heard the news. "I will never meet her again," he said, holding up a photo of his oldest daughter. Indonesia's KNKT safety agency was expected to launch an immediate investigation. The US National Safety Transportation Board will automatically be part of the probe since the plane was designed and built in the United States. Founded in 2003, Jakarta-based Sriwijaya Air group flies largely within Indonesia. The airline has a solid safety record until now, with no onboard casualties in four incidents recorded on the Aviation Safety Network database. Indonesia's patchy safety record The Boeing 737 is the world's most-sold family of aircraft and has undergone several makeovers since it entered service in 1968. The 737-500 is two generations of development before the most recent 737 MAX, which has been embroiled in a worldwide safety crisis following crashes in Indonesia and Ethiopia. It does not use the software system implicated in those crashes. Nonetheless, experts say planes such as Sriwijaya's leased 737-500 are being phased out for newer fuel-saving models. Civil jets typically have an economic life of 25 years, meaning they become too expensive to keep flying beyond that compared to younger models, but they are built to last longer. Indonesia itself has a patchy air safety record. In 2007, the European Union banned all Indonesian airlines following a series of crashes and reports of deteriorating oversight and maintenance since deregulation in the late 1990s. The restrictions were fully lifted in 2018. Between 2007 and 2016, the US Federal Aviation Administration lowered its Indonesia safety evaluation to Category 2, meaning its regulatory system was inadequate. Indonesian officials say they have worked hard to bring a safety up to international standards.

Indonesia: Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737 crashes after take-off with 62 aboard

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Crashed Indonesian Sriwijaya Air jet had engine thrust imbalance

Indonesia: Sriwijaya Air Boeing 737 crashes after take-off with 62 aboard