Indonesia training aircraft crash, claims three lives

INDONESIA: A training aircraft belonging to the Indonesia Flying Club, crashed in the Bumi Serpong Damai (BSD City), South Tangerang, on Sunday (19 May).

The tragic incident resulted in the deaths of all three people on board.

The Ministry of Transportation reported that the Tecnam P2006T aircraft originally departed from Tanjung Lesung Airport in Banten.

According to Adita Irawati, a spokesperson for the Ministry, the aircraft was en route to Pondok Cabe Airport in South Tangerang when the crash occurred.

The victims have been identified as Pilot Capt. Pulu Darmawan, Co-Pilot Capt. Suanda, and technician Capt. Farid Ahmad.

“The route of this aircraft was from Tanjung Lesung Airport, Banten, to Pondok Cabe Airport, South Tangerang,” said Adita in an official statement.

She also confirmed that the National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) would investigate the cause of the crash.

Police provide detailed account of aircraft crash

Head of Public Relations at Greater Jakarta Metropolitan Regional Police, Commissioner Ade Ary Syam Indradi, provided a detailed chronology of the events.

The aircraft took off from Pondok Cabe Airport at approximately 11:36 am and made a landing at Salakanegara Special Airport in Pandeglang, Banten.

After departing from Tanjung Lesung at around 1:10 pm, the aircraft encountered difficulties upon its return to Pondok Cabe Airport and ultimately crashed near the Sun Burst Field in BSD City at approximately 2:30 pm.

South Tangerang Resort Police Chief, Adjunct Police Commissioner Ibnu Bagus Santoso, revealed that heavy rain was present in the BSD Serpong area at the time of the aircraft crash.

Despite this observation, the police have refrained from making any definitive conclusions regarding the cause of the accident.

“The weather was bad when the aircraft crashed,” he said at the scene.

An eyewitness, Wanto, who works near the crash site, recounted the moments leading up to and following the crash.

Initially mistaking the sound for a truck accident, he soon realized a aircraft had crashed after hearing a loud bang.

“There was smoke visible from the fuselage but the fuselage was not on fire,” Wanto told CNN Indonesia.

He described seeing two victims thrown from the aircraft, with one initially showing signs of life but soon becoming unresponsive.

Wanto also mentioned observing the aircraft circling in the air and losing control before it crashed.

Victims suffered severe impact injuries, no burns

Brigadier General Hariyanto, Head of Bhayangkara Hospital (Police Hospital) Kramat Jati, provided details about the condition of the three victims from the training aircraft.

Hariyanto confirmed that the external identification process revealed the victims did not suffer burns but sustained severe injuries due to heavy impact.

“There were no burns, just a very hard impact wound. You can imagine falling and being hit,” Hariyanto told reporters on Monday (20 May).

He further disclosed that the bodies were not intact when received by the Police Hospital, although he did not specify which body parts were missing.

“The condition of the bodies is not intact, but there are no burns,” he said.

When asked about the identities of the victims, Hariyanto confirmed that they matched the identities previously disclosed to the public.

This confirmation was based on ante-mortem data obtained from the victims’ relatives.

The Police Hospital has established ante-mortem and post-mortem posts to facilitate the identification process and assist the victims’ families.