(Adds Australia's prime minister, assistance offer) By Rob Taylor CANBERRA, March 7 (Reuters) - Nine Australians were on board the jet that crashed and burst into flames in Indonesia on Wednesday, officials and journalists following a visit of Foreign Minister Alexander Downer to meet the Sultan of Yogyakarta city. Downer said five of the Australians were injured and four were missing after Garuda flight GA 200 overshot the airport runway in the cultural capital of Java. Officials said 48 people died in the blazing Boeing 737-400 and one died later, but the rest of the 140 on board escaped. Australian Prime Minister John Howard said an Australian military medical evacuation team and a C-130 Hercules military transport aircraft had been placed on standby, along with Darwin Hospital, to help treat casualties. "Given the severity of the crash and the following fire, we really should be prepared for bad news," Howard said. "I have not received any advice to suggest that it has been anything other than a tragic accident." Australian doctors and counsellors would also travel to Indonesia, while Indonesia's government had also been offered Australian police disaster-identification experts, Howard said. The missing Australians were an air force liaison staffer, a federal police officer, an embassy staff member and a journalist, all of whom were travelling from Jakarta for Downer's visit. An Australian television cameraman, Wayne Sukarda, reportedly broke both legs in the accident while a journalist with the Sydney Morning Herald, Cynthia Banham, suffered burns to both legs and was recovering in a Yogyakarta hospital. Downer and Australian Attorney-General Philip Ruddock were not in the city, having been delayed in Jakarta following a security summit. Both Downer and Ruddock's air force VIP jets were due to fly to the city as soon as the runway was cleared to offer help to any injured Indonesians or Australians requiring evacuation. Aviation disaster expert Robert Heath said aircraft speed might have been a factor in the crash. "From what I can see so far the aircraft appeared to land intact and that may point to excess speed being a factor," said Professor Heath, from the University of South Australia. "The fire may have been caused by the nose wheel hitting things as it ran off the runway or engine destruction. It was probable that a fuel tank was punctured on impact and to me it looks very similar to the Manchester Airport crash in 1985 that showed a burn pattern across the top cabin."
