Speaking to journalists here on Monday, Tjahjono remarked that several small pieces of the ill-fated plane, with 189 passengers onboard, were found.
"Hence, the plane exploded when it came into contact with water and did not explode in mid-air. If the plane explodes in mid-air, then the splinters are quite large, and we emphasize that it was still intact when it touched the water," he unveiled, adding that the plane had touched the water at high speeds.
"The splinters are small, so the speed with which the plane crashed in the water was extraordinary," he disclosed.
The splinters were scattered far from the plane`s estimated crash site.
In addition, when the plane crashed, its engine was still operating, with the turbines rotating at high speed.
"The engine was on, as was indicated by the high rotation of the turbines or compressor," he stated, noting that the aircraft engine was still intact.
"The engine faced no problems. Parts of the engine were operating at high RPM. We say the engine speed was quite high when it crashed into the waters," he added.
Reporting by Juwita Trisna Rahayu
Editing by Bustanuddin, Rahmad Nasution
Reporter: antara
Editor: Heru Purwanto
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