Garuda Indonesia Explains Aircraft Nose Damage Incident

National carrier PT Garuda Indonesia (Persero) Tbk. has issued an official explanation regarding an incident involving damage to the nose section of aircraft GA-176 on the Jakarta–Pekanbaru route, which went viral on social media.

Division Head of Garuda Indonesia, Dicky Irchamsyah, stated that flight GA-176 from Jakarta to Pekanbaru, which operated on Saturday, 7 March 2026, landed safely and normally at Sultan Syarif Kasim II Airport in Pekanbaru.

However, during the landing process, an unknown airborne object was detected in the vicinity of the aircraft. “The indication of a foreign object was identified after the flight crew heard an unusual sound during landing preparation procedures,” Dicky said in a written statement on Monday, 9 March 2026.

In response, the Pilot in Command (PIC) immediately implemented safety mitigation procedures in accordance with standard operational procedures to ensure the landing process proceeded safely and in a controlled manner. Further inspections are currently being conducted to identify and confirm the presence of the foreign object.

Flight GA-176, operated using aircraft PK-GFF, departed Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at 15:35 WIB and arrived normally in Pekanbaru at 17:14 WIB. All 117 passengers, together with 2 flight deck crew and 5 cabin crew, landed safely, and the arrival process proceeded smoothly and normally.

Upon arrival at the destination airport, the aircraft immediately underwent technical inspection and investigation by the relevant teams. “Follow-up actions including comprehensive inspection and fleet maintenance will be conducted before the aircraft is declared airworthy again in accordance with applicable aviation safety standards,” Dicky said.

Garuda Indonesia is currently maintaining intensive coordination with relevant aviation authorities to ensure that all handling processes are conducted in accordance with aviation safety procedures and regulations.