BEIJING, Jan 4. (Xinhuanet) -- A top Indonesian aviation official said Thursday the missing jetliner with 102 passengers on board did not send distress signals or report mechanical problems before disappearing Monday.

    Iksan Tatang, the director general of air transportation, said the missing plane reported winds as high as 74 knots before losing contact with the ground midway through its flight from Indonesia's main island of Java to Manado on Sulawesi Island.

    "The plane did not report any complaints about the navigation, the condition of the plane or other technical problems," he said, adding that two signals from its emergency beacon -- which is activated on impact -- were picked up by a plane in the vicinity and satellites.

    That appeared to contradict earlier reports from officials that the pilot sent out two distress signals before the plane went down.

    Transport Minister Hatta Radjasa said it was too soon to say what may have caused the crash.

    "I urge people not to speculate, we must wait until the National Commission for Transportation Safety has located the ill-fated plane," he told reporters.

    (Agencies)