Plane with 17 people on board missing in Papua

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura

GT Air's Twin Otter aircraft belonging to PT Mimika Air with 17 people on board went missing in Papua on Tuesday on its flight from Timika to Enarotali, the regental capital of Paniai, the police have said.

Paniai Police chief Sr. Adj. Comr. Anthonius Diance, told The Jakarta Post by phone late Tuesday that the aircraft's 14 passengers and three crew members -- pilot Hendri, co-pilot Toto and mechanic Samudji -- took off from Timika at 10:50 a.m. local time, or 8:50 a.m. Jakarta time, and was expected to arrive in Enarotali at 11:15 a.m. local time.

"But at 11:15 a.m., and even until now, the whereabouts of the aircraft is unknown, we can only say that the aircraft is missing," Anthonius said.

He said that two other private aircraft, Avia Star from Nabire and an MAF from Timika, have conducted a search from the air, but the location of the GT Air aircraft, a regional airline partly owned by the local administration, was still not known.

"We have contacted police precincts in remote areas that have airstrips to find out the whereabouts of the missing aircraft, whether it has landed there. But they said 'no'," Anthonius said.

He blamed bad weather in Enarotali in the last couple of days for the incident. "The weather is really bad, with thick haze during rain," he said.

Paniai Police, he said, are planning to send a team out on Wednesday to look for the aircraft, "I've already briefed the 10 officers who will conduct the search," he said.

The lack of land transportation means that Papua, and its neighboring province of West Irian Jaya, rely heavily on air traffic and Tuesday's accident adds to a number of recent crashes in the mountainous area.

In February, 15 people were killed after a Casa 212 police aircraft nose-dived into an estuary meters in front of Papua's Sarmi Airport. Later in the month, an aircraft struck a fence while landing at the Enarotali airstrip, causing extensive wing damage but no casualties.

In December last year, a 212 Bell helicopter belonging to the Indonesian Military crashed into the Silimo River in Nabire while conducting a route check prior to the visit of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono there on Dec. 24. Three passengers and three crew were killed in the accident.