Body Discovered Amid Indonesian Plane Wreckage
A body has been located in the aftermath of a plane crash in South Sulawesi, Indonesia. The downed aircraft, a fisheries surveillance plane, went missing while conducting air surveillance for Indonesia’s Marine Affairs and Fisheries Ministry. The ATR 42-500 turboprop was chartered for the mission and lost contact with air traffic control on Saturday around 1:30 PM local time.
Crash Details
The plane, which had ten individuals on board—seven crew members and three ministry staff—was en route from Yogyakarta to Makassar when it vanished from radar. On Sunday, local authorities reported finding wreckage scattered across the slopes of Mount Bulusaraung in the Maros region.
- Location of Crash: Mount Bulusaraung, Maros region
- Aircraft Type: ATR 42-500
- Number of Passengers: 10 (7 crew, 3 passengers)
- Flight Path: From Yogyakarta to Makassar
- Last Contact: Saturday at 1:30 PM local time
Wreckage Discovery
Search teams from the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) found parts of the aircraft on Sunday morning, including large sections believed to be the fuselage and the tail. Thick fog and difficult terrain hampered the recovery efforts.
Rescuers were deployed to various sites where wreckage was discovered. By Sunday afternoon, one body was recovered from a ravine approximately 200 meters from the mountain’s peak.
Conducting Further Searches
More than 1,200 personnel are being mobilized for the ongoing search for the other missing individuals. Muhammad Arif Anwar, head of the South Sulawesi rescue agency, emphasized that rescuers remain focused on locating the victims. The status of the other nine passengers remains unclear.
Investigation into the Incident
The head of Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT), Soerjanto Tjahjono, stated that initial findings suggest the aircraft crashed in a “controlled flight into terrain” scenario, indicating the pilot maintained control during flight. Further investigation will be necessary to ascertain the precise cause of the accident.
Aviation experts suggest that most crash events result from multiple contributing factors. The ATR 42-500, produced by the Franco-Italian manufacturer ATR, is a regional aircraft designed for 42 to 50 passengers. Flight tracking data indicated that the surveillance plane last transmitted a signal at approximately 0420 GMT, about 20 kilometers northeast of Makassar airport.
Historical Context
This tragic incident marks Indonesia’s first deadly ATR 42 crash in over a decade. The last recorded crash involving this aircraft model occurred in 2015, when a Trigana Air Service flight crashed in Papua, resulting in the loss of all 54 aboard.
Filmogaz.com will continue to monitor the situation as more information becomes available.
