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South Korea calls for more scrutiny in airliner crash probe

SEOUL, July 14 (UPI) -- South Korea has fired off a protest over the handling of the investigation into the crash of an Asiana Airlines jet in the United States.

The transportation ministry faxed a two-page letter Friday to the U.S. National Transportation Safety Board criticizing what it said was the release of too many details of the ongoing investigation to the news media.

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Sources told South Korea's Yonhap news agency the NTSB improperly disclosed details about preliminary interviews with the plane's crew and data obtained from the flight recorders. The statements, the letter said, were giving the public the impression pilot error was to blame for the crash when the investigation was still ongoing.

The July 6 crash-landing at San Francisco International Airport killed three passengers and injured about 180 people. The preliminary investigation indicated the Boeing 777 was flying too low and slow as it approached the runway.

Yonhap said the transportation ministry insisted the investigation be conducted in "accordance with international standards" and urged greater cooperation between U.S. and South Korean investigators at the scene.

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