Indonesian Reconnaissance Aircraft Missing with 11 Passengers

Indonesian rescuers are searching for an ATR 42-500 reconnaissance aircraft that vanished with 11 people on board. The aircraft lost contact with air traffic control at around 1:30 PM (GMT 05:30) near the Maros district in South Sulawesi, reported local rescue agency official Andi Sultan to Reuters.

Sultan noted that the plane was en route from Yogyakarta province to Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi, when it lost contact. He added that there were eight crew members and three passengers on board the aircraft.

Approximately 400 personnel, including military and police units, have been dispatched to search for the aircraft and those on board, although efforts have been hampered by bad weather. He refrained from commenting on the possible cause of the incident.

“We suspect that the aircraft crashed near the peak of Mount Bulusaraung. We have deployed our personnel there,” he said. The Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, Sakti Wahyu Trenggono, stated that three of the passengers were ministry employees conducting aerial oversight in the fishing sector.