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Body found after Indonesia Air Transport plane crashes into mountain
Indonesian authorities have located the wreckage of a fisheries surveillance plane that went missing in South Sulawesi province near a fog-covered mountain and recovered the body of one of the 10 people on board.
The ATR 42-500 turboprop owned by aviation group Indonesia Air Transport lost contact with air traffic control on Saturday at approximately 1.30 PM local time around the Maros region in South Sulawesi. There were seven crew members and three passengers aboard, all of whom were ministry staff members on a mission for Indonesia’s Marine Affairs and Fisheries Ministry.
On Sunday morning, local rescuers found the wreckage scattered in different locations around Mount Bulusaraung in the Maros area. The mountain is located approximately 1500 km northeast of Jakarta, the capital of Indonesia.
Rescue agency official Andi Sultan reported, “Our helicopter crews have seen the debris of the plane’s window at 7.46 AM.” He added that large parts of the aircraft, suspected to be the fuselage, were located shortly after, along with the aircraft’s tail.
Due to thick fog and the challenging mountainous terrain, rescue operations have faced difficulties. Rescuers discovered a crash victim’s body in a ravine about 200m from Mount Bulusaraung’s peak.
The head of South Sulawesi’s rescue agency, Muhammad Arif Anwar, noted that the priority remains to find the remaining victims, with plans to deploy 1200 personnel to assist in the search.
According to initial findings from Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT), the aircraft likely experienced a controlled flight into terrain, indicating the pilot was managing the aircraft before the crash.
Aviation experts have acknowledged that most accidents result from a combination of factors, and investigations are ongoing to ascertain the cause of this incident.
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