Accident
On the day of the accident, the aircraft was descending to Jakarta-Kemayoran Airport when the crew sent a distress call reporting that the aircraft was unstable. Shortly thereafter, the aircraft banked left and entered a dive. It crashed in an open field in the Karawang region, approximately 26 kilometers east of Jakarta. Debris was scattered over an area 2 kilometers wide. All 37 occupants of the aircraft were killed.
Investigation
The investigation into the accident determined the probable cause. It found that the in-flight fracture of a spigot in the elevator tab circuit led to the loss of control. The spigot had a mandatory retirement life of 12,000 flight hours but had accumulated 33,000 flight hours—exceeding the retirement life by 21,000 hours. Notably, the total flight hours on the failed part were higher than the total airframe hours flown by the aircraft. This discrepancy indicated that the part had been transferred from another aircraft at some point. That transfer would have been an opportunity to notice that the fatigue life of the part had already been exceeded.
Probable Cause
The official probable cause stated that the accident was due to the in-flight fracture of a spigot in the elevator tab circuit. This part had exceeded its 12,000 flight hours retirement life by 21,000 hours, resulting in a total life of 33,000 hours. The investigation noted that the part must have been transferred from another aircraft, which should have allowed the detection of the exceeded fatigue life.