Crash investigations will take several weeks - RMAF chief

Royal Malaysian Air Force chief General Datuk Seri Affendi Buang said the investigation period would also depend on the evidences obtained and testimonies from the aircraft crew, especially the co-pilot, Captain Wai Lik who is currently being treated for injuries at the Penang Hospital.

"The board of inquiry is looking into the cause of the accident ...the investigation is progressing well, we hope with the evidences that we are getting now we will be able to determine the cause of the accident soon.

"At the moment it is a bit too early (to determine the cause), we do not want to speculate as to why the aircraft crashed," he said here, today.

Earlier he accompanied Defence Minister Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Tun Hussein to visit two flight crew members Captain Wai Lik, 24, and Flight Sergeant Mohd Sofi Azizan, 29, at the Penang Hospital here today.

In the meantime, Affendi said to get more accurate outcome of the inquiry, there were a few components such as engine and mechanical equipment that need to be sent to the place where it was manufactured, for clarification.

"It will take time, so the crash investigation will depend on preliminary evidence that we can collect now. Once the investigation is completed, the announcement would be made formally and transparently," he said.

He also praised the swift action by rescue teams at the Butterworth air base as it took them only two minutes to respond to help the crew members involved in the incident.

"Respond time by the rescue team was very fast considering the distance between them and the incident," he said.