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Evening Standard
Evening Standard
World

Lion Air jet in runway crash just 10 days after crash disaster which killed 189

Forensic officers stand by a damaged tyre from last month's fatal Lion Air crash. On Wednesday, another Lion Air plane was involved in an incident on an airport runway (Picture: Reuters)

Lion Air was facing further pressure over safety on Thursday after one of its planes hit a lamp post on a runway.

The latest incident came just 10 days after a Lion Air plane crashed into the sea in Indonesia, killing all 189 people on board.

On Wednesday night, the Lion Air plane was taking off from Bengkulu, Indonesia, when the wing struck the lamp post.

The wing was damaged and the flight was aborted, with the plane directed from the runway.

On October 29, Lion Air’s two-month-old Boeing 737 MAX 8 crashed into the Java Sea 13 minutes after take-off from Jakarta.

Both that flight and its October 28 flight from Bali to Jakarta had erratic speed and altitude shortly after take-off.

Rescuers use a crane to retrieve part of the landing gears of the crashed Lion Air jet (AP)

Indonesia's search and rescue agency has extended the search until Sunday. Body parts were still being recovered this week and searchers continued to hunt for the cockpit voice recorder.

Lion Air is one of Indonesia's youngest airlines but has grown rapidly, flying to dozens of domestic and international destinations.

However, it has been plagued by a poor safety record. Since it was founded in 1999, it has been involved in 12 crashes.

Two, including the one last month, were fatal. The other happened in 2004, again in Indonesia, when a jet overran the runway and crashed into a metal fence. Of the 163 people on board, 25 died.

Lion Air is yet to comment on the latest incident.

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