Indonesia Locates Wreckage of Missing Fisheries Patrol Plane

Indonesian authorities have located the wreckage of a missing fisheries surveillance plane near a misty mountain in South Sulawesi province, but the search for the 11 people on board continues. According to Reuters, Andi, an official from the South Sulawesi rescue agency, stated that rescue teams found aircraft window fragments at 7:46 AM and the main wreckage at 7:49 AM on Sunday (January 18) in the Maros region near Mount Burusan. The tail section was also discovered at the foot of the mountain. Rescue personnel have been dispatched to the crash site, but thick fog and challenging terrain are hindering search efforts. Video footage shared by authorities shows a scattered aircraft window amidst dense fog and strong winds. Arif, head of the rescue agency, mentioned that 1,200 personnel will be deployed to search for the missing passengers and crew. 'Our top priority is to locate the people on board, and we hope to bring them to safety,' he said. The plane, an ATR 42-500 turboprop aircraft operated by the Indonesian Transportation Group, was on a fisheries surveillance mission for the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. It carried eight crew members and three passengers, all of whom were officials. The flight departed from Yogyakarta on Saturday (January 17) and lost contact with air traffic control at around 1:30 PM near Maros, South Sulawesi. The Indonesian National Transportation Safety Committee will lead the investigation into the crash. The ATR 42-500, manufactured by the Franco-Italian aircraft company ATR, is a regional turboprop plane designed to carry between 42 and 50 passengers.