A Polish jet that landed in Smolensk, Russia, shortly before the fatal crash of the plane carrying President Lech Kaczynski had problems with a radio beacon, the daily Rzeczpospolita reported Friday, citing anonymous sources, DPA report.
The Yak-40 landed on April 10 less than an hour before the plane carrying Kaczynski and 95 others crashed. Polish leaders and officials were traveling to Russia to commemorate the Katyn massacre, in which about 22,000 Polish officers were murdered in 1940.
The Yak-40 plane, which was also carrying Polish officials, had problems picking up signals from a radio beacon located about a kilometre away from the landing strip, the daily reported, citing a government expert and an air force leader.
The beacon is one of the key instruments that helps guide an aircraft while landing, Rzeczpospolita said.
The technical glitch raises new questions about the cause of the crash, the daily said.
Currently, Polish and Russian investigators are cooperating on two separate probes into the crash, which claimed the lives of dozens of politicians and military leaders.
"A lot points to the fact that training was deficient in army flights, and that the crew made a mistake," Rzeczpospolita said, echoing a preliminary report that recommended the pilots should receive more training.