Runway Defects Cited in Jet Crash

Lights were broken and markers missing for a runway that should have been used by a Singapore Airlines jet that slammed into debris and exploded while taking off on a closed parallel runway, killing 82 people, Taiwanese officials said.

The preliminary report by investigators, who said it was too early to say what caused the Oct. 31 crash of the Los Angeles-bound jet, painted a troubling picture of the airport. The report said the pilots ignored instruments that indicated that the plane was not on the correct runway.