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ASIA-PACIFIC 
Garuda crash pilot quits job: lawyer
Thursday, 28 February, 2008
The pilot of a Garuda plane that crashed in Indonesia killing five Australians and 16 others resigned after the company gave him an ultimatum, his lawyer says.
Police have indicated that Captain Marwoto Komar will be charged with negligence over the crash in Yogyakarta on March 7 last year.
A final report by safety regulators said the pilot was so "fixated" with landing that he ignored 15 alarms and the pleas of his copilot warning he was coming in too fast.
Komar's lawyer said his client has resigned from his job with Garuda.
"We regret Garuda so soon giving Marwoto the option of being fired or resigning," Kamal Firdaus told reporters as he and his client left Yogyakarta, where police are continuing investigations.
"Automatically, our client chose to resign."
Komar was arrested over the crash early this month. He was granted bail on February 15.
He is believed to be the first pilot to face criminal charges over a plane crash in Indonesia, which has a bad aviation safety record.
The Boeing 737 overshot the runway after landing too fast in March last year and burst into flames.
Five Australians travelling to Yogyakarta for an official visit by the then Foreign Minister Alexander Downer were among those killed.
Source: AAP
