An alarm that should have warned pilots of problems with the wing flaps may have failed when a Spanair plane crashed in Madrid.

The crash in August occurred just after takeoff, killing 154 people while 18 survived. The plane was headed to the Canary Islands and most of the passengers were vacationers either heading to the islands or returning home.

A preliminary investigation of the crash found that the wing flaps were retracted during takeoff when they should have been extended, the Financial Times reported. The plane's black box flight recorder picked up no noise of a warning signal on the flaps.

Some witnesses suggested that the Boeing MD-82 might have suffered engine failure either from a fire or from a large bird hitting the plane. But the report said there were no signs of the engine failing.

The Aug. 20 crash was Spain's worst aviation disaster in a quarter century.

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