Rini Soemarno Expresses Deep Concern Over Trigana Plane Crash

Jakarta (Antara Bali) - State Enterprises Minister Rini Soemarno expressed deep concern over the crash of Trigana Airways ATR aircraft carrying 54 people, including four employees of the state-owned postal firm PT Pos Indonesia, in Papua Province, on Sunday.

"We offer our moral support to the people who are involved in the search and rescue mission for finding the missing aircraft and those on board," she stated on the sidelines of the celebration of the 70th anniversary of Indonesia's Independence Day here Monday.

Rini noted that authorized personnel from the ministry would immediately coordinate with the related parties for the sake of the four employees of PT Pos Indonesia, who were on duty aboard the flight.

She also urged the people of Indonesia to pray for the safety of those on board the aircraft, which lost contact during its flight from Jayapura to Oksibil, Papua, on Sunday.

According to Pegunungan Bintang district government, the crash site of the aircraft carrying five crew and 49 passengers, including two children and three infants, was likely in Tiga Village, Okpabe sub-district.

According to the Indonesian Ministry of Transportation, the ill-fated ATR aircraft bearing flight number 267 lost contact on Sunday, at 2:55 p.m. local time.

Chief of the Sentani air base Col. I Made Susila Adyana informed Antara that his airbase, in cooperation with the search and rescue team, had mapped out the crash location of the ATR-type aircraft.

Chief of Bintang Mountain Resort Police Adjunct Senior Commissioner Yunus Wally remarked that the aircraft was believed to have crashed during its flight from Jayapura to Oksibil.

The aircraft, with pilot Hasanudin and co-pilot Aryadi, was scheduled to arrive in Oksibil at 3:15 p.m. East Indonesia Time after a 55-minute flight, but it failed to arrive at the scheduled time. (WDY)