Indonesian Rescuers Discover Plane Wreckage with 11 on Board 

Indonesian Rescuers Discover Plane Wreckage with 11 on Board

Indonesian search and rescue teams have located the wreckage of an Indonesia Air Transport plane that went missing on Saturday with 11 people on board.

An air force helicopter spotted a window and other debris on Sunday morning in a densely forested area on the slopes of Mount Bulusaraung in South Sulawesi province.

The aircraft, a turboprop ATR 42-500, was carrying eight crew members and three passengers from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries. The group was conducting an airborne maritime surveillance mission when the plane vanished from radar during its approach to Makassar.

Officials noted that the flight had been operating in cloudy conditions before losing contact.

Following the aerial discovery, ground teams retrieved larger sections of the aircraft, including the main fuselage and tail, which were scattered across a steep northern slope.

Muhammad Arif Anwar, head of the local search and rescue office, stated that finding these main sections has significantly narrowed the search zone, allowing teams to focus on locating the individuals on board.

The rescue operation has faced significant challenges due to the difficult environment, including heavy fog, strong winds, and the rugged, steep terrain of the mountain.

Despite these obstacles, roughly 400 personnel from the military, police, and search and rescue agencies have been deployed to reach the site and search for any potential survivors.

Indonesia’s aviation industry has historically struggled with safety, frequently facing transport accidents across its vast archipelago of over 17,000 islands. As the investigation begins, specialists from the aircraft manufacturer, ATR, are working with Indonesian authorities to determine the cause of the crash and identify any contributing factors.