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Indonesian plane with 54 people on board missing in remote Papua region Indonesian plane with 54 people on board missing in remote Papua region
(about 1 hour later)
An Indonesian domestic passenger aircraft carrying 54 people has lost contact with air traffic control in the remote eastern Papua region, the country’s national search and rescue agency said.An Indonesian domestic passenger aircraft carrying 54 people has lost contact with air traffic control in the remote eastern Papua region, the country’s national search and rescue agency said.
The plane was flying between Jayapura’s Sentani airport and Oksibil, the capital of Papua province.The plane was flying between Jayapura’s Sentani airport and Oksibil, the capital of Papua province.
Transportation ministry spokesman Julius Barata said the ATR42-300 twin turboprop lost contact with the airport nine minutes before it was scheduled to land.
The search and rescue agency tweeted to say the aircraft was operated by Trigana Air Service and carrying 44 adult passengers, five children and five crew members.
Related: Indonesian rescue teams end hunt for AirAsia flight QZ8501 crash victimsRelated: Indonesian rescue teams end hunt for AirAsia flight QZ8501 crash victims
The country of 250 million people and about 17,000 islands is one of Asia’s fastest-growing aviation markets, but is struggling to provide enough qualified pilots, mechanics, air traffic controllers and updated airport technology to ensure safety. Transportation ministry spokesman Julius Barata said the ATR 42-300 twin turboprop lost contact with the airport nine minutes before it was scheduled to land.
In January an AirAsia flight from from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore crashed into the sea, killing all 162 people on board the Airbus A320. The search and rescue agency tweeted to say the aircraft was operated by Trigana Air Service and carrying 44 adult passengers, five children and five crew members.
The crash prompted the Indonesian government to introduce regulations aimed at improving safety. Trigana has been on the EU list of banned carriers since 2007. Airlines on the list cannot operate in European airspace because of concerns about either their safety standards, or the standard of regulation in their home country. The airline operates aircraft with 10 ATR planes and four Boeing 737 that are an average of 26.6 years old.
Trigana has had 14 serious incidents since it began operations in 1991, according to the Aviation Safety Network’s online database. Excluding this latest incident, it has written off 10 aircraft.
The ATR 42-300 aircraft was first flown 27 years ago. ATR is a joint venture between Airbus and Alenia Aermacchi, a subsidiary of Italy’s Finmeccanica.
Indonesia, a country of 250 million people and made up of about 17,000 islands, is one of Asia’s fastest-growing aviation markets but has a poor aviation safety record. It struggles to provide enough qualified pilots, mechanics, air traffic controllers and updated airport technology to ensure adequate safety levels.
In January an AirAsia Airbus A320 flying from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore crashed into the Java sea, killing all 162 people on board. The crash prompted the Indonesian government to introduce regulations aimed at improving safety.
Last month Indonesia’s president promised a review of the ageing air force fleet after a military transport plane crashed in the north of the country, killing more than 100 people.Last month Indonesia’s president promised a review of the ageing air force fleet after a military transport plane crashed in the north of the country, killing more than 100 people.