Maintenance lapse identified as initial problem leading to Lion Air crash

Crash investigators have concluded preliminarily that improper calibration of an airspeed sensor during maintenance touched off the sequence of events that led to October’s fatal Lion Air jetliner crash in Indonesia, according to people familiar with the details. The conclusion is subject to further analysis, these people said, but it is the firmest indication so far that a suspected maintenance lapse was the initial misstep that ended with the months-old Boeing 737 MAX aircraft plunging into the Java Sea. Investigators also continue to delve into shortcomings discovered in the design of a new safety system on the plane. Lion Air co-founder Rusdi Kirana has disputed that any maintenance error occurred, saying that calibration was performed properly in accordance with the manufacturer’s manual. <br/>