The last four flights a Lion Air passenger plane embarked upon before its fatal descent into the Java Sea all had a problem with the airspeed indicator, Indonesia's National Transportation Safety Committee has found.

Key points: Data from the black box data recorder shows the jet's speed and altitude were erratic

Data from the black box data recorder shows the jet's speed and altitude were erratic Indonesia is asking Boeing and air safety authorities in the US how to prevent similar problems in the future

Indonesia is asking Boeing and air safety authorities in the US how to prevent similar problems in the future It is still not clear whether the airspeed indicator problem was a mechanical or maintenance issue

Committee head Soerjanto Tjahjono and investigator Nurcahyo Utomo told a news conference that the problem was similar on each of the four flights, including the one on October 29 that killed all 189 people on board.

The stunning revelation came after angry relatives confronted the airline's co-founder at a meeting organised by Indonesian officials.

At the meeting, Mr Soerjanto said information downloaded from the flight data recorder was consistent with reports the plane's speed and altitude were erratic.

Mr Soerjanto told reporters the safety committee was asking Boeing and air safety authorities in the United States what action to take to prevent similar problems on this type of plane around the world.

"We are formulating, with [the National Transportation Safety Board in the US] and Boeing, detailed inspections regarding the airspeed indicator," he said.

It was not immediately clear whether the reported problem stemmed from a mechanical or maintenance issue, nor whether US authorities would order any checks.

"Whether the trouble came from its indicator, its measuring device or sensor, or a problem with its computer — this is what we do not know yet," Mr Nurcahyo said.

"We don't know yet where the problem lies, what repair has been done, what their reference books are, what components have been removed.

"These are the things we are trying to find out: what was the damage and how it was fixed."

A family member cries at the funeral of Jannatun Cintya Dewi, a passenger of the crashed Lion Air flight. ( Reuters: Sigit Pamungkas )

Many families face an agonising wait for missing relatives to be identified.

Police medical experts have received nearly 140 body bags of human remains and have identified 14 victims.

Relatives questioned why the plane had been cleared to fly after suffering problems on its Bali to Jakarta flight on October 28 that included a rapid descent after take-off that terrified passengers.

"Lion Air said the problem was fixed, is it true the problem was cleared?" said Bambang Sukandar, whose son was on the flight.

"If not, technicians in charge must be responsible."

Another man, who identified himself as the father of passenger Shandy Johan Ramadhan, a prosecutor in a district on the island where the flight was headed, said Lion Air had "failed" the families of victims.

"Since the time of the crisis, I was never contacted by Lion Air. We lost our child, but there was no empathy that Lion Air showed to us," he said.

After the meeting with passengers' relatives, Mr Rusdi left in a hurry, avoiding questions from reporters.

Safety experts have said it is too early to determine the cause of the crash of the flight.

Authorities have yet to recover the jet's cockpit voice recorder from the sea floor, just north-east of Jakarta, where the plane crashed 13 minutes into its flight.

Boeing did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The US manufacturer has delivered 219 of the 737 MAX jets to airlines around the world. The Lion Air crash was the first involving this type of plane, which was only introduced into service last year.

AP/Reuters