Asiana Airlines, hit hard by the deadly crash landing of its Boeing 777 airliner at a San Francisco airport on Saturday, may be at risk of being blacked out of the joint investigation altogether, those close to the matter said Wednesday.

They said that while the (U.S.) National Transportation Safety Board cannot physically keep Asiana out of this, the airline may soon be put in the dark about significant matters if the friction between the board and the Korean airline continues. 

Asiana recently received an official warning from the U.S. aviation safety authorities that are leading the investigation into the jet crash that killed two Chinese teenagers and injured more than 180 other people on board.

Referring to Sunday’s press conference with Lee Yoon-hye, the cabin manager of the doomed flight, the NTSB warned Asiana, Korea’s second-largest air carrier, to refrain from holding such highly publicized media events.

“The NTSB may have believed the press conference could affect the public sentiment about the ongoing investigation,” said an Asiana spokesperson. “They asked us to share any information in advance of releasing it.”

In its complaint, the NTSB required Asiana to share the conversations during Lee’s press conference in English. The planned press meeting with Asiana CEO Yoon Young-doo upon his arrival at San Francisco International Airport on Tuesday was also cancelled.

“A regular press briefing is still allowed. But they may want to control all the information shared with the public,” the official said.

The NTSB, however, made it clear that the U.S. agency should be the sole source of information, adding it is receiving good cooperation from Asiana.

“As we are leading the investigation into the crash, the NTSB is the sole source of the release of factual information regarding the investigation. Asiana Airlines is working within our process,” Kelly Nantel, public affairs chief at the NTSB, told The Korea Herald via email.

About the possibility of Asiana being shunned in the ongoing investigation, industry watchers say the airline may push to deliver its own explanations as attention is being paid to pilot error in the jet crash.

“Even though the NTSB has repeated that they are looking at all possibilities, their recent statements gave the impression that the agency is seeking probable cause in the pilots,” said another industry source, declining to be named.

Based on a preliminary review of flight data and cockpit communications, the NTSB said the Asiana jet was flying too slowly before smashing into the airport’s seawall with no obvious mechanical problems reported.

Following the announcement, the agency also confirmed that Lee Kang-kuk, 46, who was in charge of landing the 777, was in training to switch to a new type of plane and he had only 43 hours of flight experience with a 777.

Answering to speculation over possible pilot error, Yoon, the Asiana chief, dismissed it immediately. “Lee is a veteran pilot fully qualified to pilot the plane,” he said.

By Lee Ji-yoon (jylee@heraldcorp.com)