Merpati plane crashes, killing all three on board

JAKARTA (JP): A Casa-212 Merpati Nusantara Airlines aircraft crashed near Pattimura airport in Ambon, Maluku, yesterday morning killing its three-man crew, the airline's spokesman said.

Tondo Widodo said flight MZ 7979 crashed at 10:57 a.m. about one kilometer from the airport where it was scheduled to land.

The aircraft was on its way from Langgur, where its left engine had been under repair for a week, Antara reported.

Tondo said Captain Danny Moelyana, 41, flight officer Rachmat Arief Fitriyadi, 26, and airborne mechanic Ambang Hari Laksana, 26, had been aboard the plane.

Antara reported yesterday that their bodies were badly mutilated.

Eyewitnesses said the aircraft nose-dived from an altitude of about 200 meters. It crashed on land earmarked for the expansion of the Pattimura airport.

"We saw how the plane crashed. My colleague fainted upon seeing it," an eyewitness said.

The 16-year-old plane did not carry any passengers, he said.

The bodies of the crew were flown to Jakarta to be handed over to relatives at Halim Perdana Kusuma airport yesterday evening.

Minister of Transportation Haryanto Dhanutirto said that only one engine was working when the aircraft reported that it was in trouble before crashing.

Merpati has 10 other Casa-212 aircraft.

The aircraft was built in 1981 by Nurtanio, now state-owned PT IPTN, and from Casa of Spain.

This is the second accident this year to befall Merpati, a subsidiary of national flag carrier Garuda. On April 19, a British-made Advanced Turbo Prop plane crashed in Belitung, South Sumatra, killing 15 people and injuring 31. (01)