Lion Air flight crash: Data recorder reveals malfunction

Relatives of victims asking why Boeing 737 MAX plane was allowed to fly despite problems with the flight control system.

Investigations into the Lion Air flight crash have revealed that the Boeing 747 plane had the same fault on four flights before it went down.

The damage on the plane that crashed into the sea, killing all 189 aboard, was revealed after data had been downloaded from the aircraft’s flight data recorder, Indonesia‘s National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) chief Soerjanto Tjahjono told reporters on Monday.

The Boeing 737 MAX is a more fuel-efficient version of the manufacturer’s popular single-aisle jet.

The US manufacturer has delivered 219 737 MAX jets to customers globally, its website shows, with 4,564 orders for jets yet to be delivered.

Al Jazeera’s Alexi O’Brien reports.