"As unlikely as it seemed at first, the aircraft operating as SQ006 on October 31 was on the wrong runway," chief executive Cheong Choong Kong told a media briefing.

"We accept this finding. We are deeply distressed and very concerned and profoundly sorry."

Preliminary findings from the official crash investigation found the pilot turned into a runway closed for repair and slammed into construction equipment when trying to take off in near-typhoon conditions late Oct 31 night.

While lined up on the closed runway, number 05R, flight captain Foong Chee Kong radioed to the control tower he was on the correct runway, 05L. The runways lie parallel to each other.

"We've got to understand what caused that error to be made and we will have to look at every contributory factor and understand how that mistake could have been made," Cheong said.

"It was obviously a pilot error, it was a human factor involved. We should also look to see whether safety features at airports are adequate."

Although questions have been raised about why the crew were not warned of the error, Cheong said SIA was not seeking to diminish its responsibility

"They are our pilots, it was our aircraft, the aircraft should not be on that runway and, as I say, we accept full responsibility," he said.

But Cheong said it was critical to established exactly "what made the cockpit crew believe they were on the correct runway."

The flight captain, Foong Chee Kong, and co-pilots Latiff Cyrano and Ng Kheng Leng, who were among the 98 survivors of the crash, have been barred from leaving Taiwan pending further investigation.

Foong was interviewed several times by his airline superiors after the crash and constantly maintained he was on the correct runway.

The cockpit crew have now been told the truth, and the crash survivors and the families of those killed have also been informed.

Cheong said the airline would not conceal anything.

"There are questions we ought to ask. How could this happen? How could any pilot, any trained professional pilot have got into the wrong runway ... we want those answers, and if those answers can improve safety it's incumbent on us to make them known."

Apart from working with the official investigators, Singapore Airlines would be examining all possibilities themselves to discover what led to the fatal error, he said.

"Once the answers are established, we will take whatever action is necessary to ensure this tragic accident doesn't happen again."

When SIA said earlier Nov 3 it accepted there had been a "horrifying mistake" with the aircraft on the wrong runway it prompted a crisis of confidence in the company's shares, which plunged 5.7 percent on the local bourse.

The dive spilled over to DBS Group Holdings Ltd. whose insurance unit has some exposure to SIA. DBS later issued a statement saying the exposure was "minimal."

The Singapore government said it took the preliminary findings seriously and pledged "all possible action" to prevent a recurrence of the accident.

Singapore investigators and civil aviation officials assisting with the investigation have been instructed "to leave no stone unturned" in determining the cause of the accident, the government said.