Dead airplane crew family get alimonies
JAKARTA (JP): The president of the state-owned Nusantara Aircraft Industry (IPTN), B.J. Habibie, gave alimonies yesterday to the families of flight team members who died in a recent plane crash.
A company director, Juwono, told Antara that the wives of test pilot Erwin Danuwinata, co-pilot S.F. Hamijaya Halim, flight test engineer Didik Permadi, flight test mechanics Prihartono Sutodiwiryo and Bambang S. Budiprasetyo received pensions worth between Rp 29 million and Rp 52 million (US$12,000 and $21,700).
They were also granted between Rp 12 million and Rp 25 million in accident insurance from state-owned insurance company PT Jamsostek.
The five crew members died when their military version CN-235 aircraft crashed during a test to parachute-drop a four-ton cargo at Gorda airbase in Serang, West Java, on May 22.
Habibie, who is also State Minister of Research and Technology, said the accident was a surprise because the test had been successfully done 20 times.
The plane crashed after a rope from a second parachute broke from its sand cargo while it was still inside the plane, causing the plane to lose balance and crash.
An American cargo dropping instructor, William Denton, was also killed in the accident.
The five Indonesians were awarded the Bintang Sakti (Sacred Star) for their "extraordinary service beyond the call of duty".
They were buried at Cikutra Hero Cemetery in the West Java capital of Bandung.
While receiving the Grand Officeir dans l'Orde National de la Legion d'Honneur from France on Wednesday, Habibie said IPTN would not send its N-250/100 Krincingwesi to the Paris Air Show from June 15 to June 21, partly because of the death of two its best test pilots.
"We have been forced to cancel our participation in the show because of a lack of skillful test pilots and the aircraft's inadequate test flights. We might send it to the same show within the next two years," Habibie was quoted by Antara as saying.
In the absence of N-250/100, Indonesia will field its N-250 Gatotkaca and CN-235 in the airshow.
Habibie said the Krincingwesi had only done 50 of the mandatory 100 hours of test flights. The remaining tests were postponed after the death of Erwin and his teammates.
Habibie was awarded the prestigious award for his contribution to research and technology cooperation between France and Indonesia.
France's ambassador to Indonesia, Thierry de Beauce, presented the award.
Napoleon Bonaparte created the award in 1802 to acknowledge people's civil and military services.
It was Habibie's second French medal. In 1986 he received the Grand Croix dans L'Orde Nationale du Merite. (amd)