Crash Site of Missing Indonesia Plane Found in Papua, Official Says

Relatives of a passenger on board the missing Trigana Air Service flight providing information to police officers on Monday at the airport serving Jayapura, Indonesia, where the plane took off. CreditAntara Foto, via Reuters

The Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency on Monday found what it believed to be the crash site of a commercial aircraft carrying 54 people that vanished the day before in stormy weather in the eastern province of Papua, an official said. A civilian search and rescue team, supported by the Indonesian military, was battling through thick, mountainous jungle to reach the site where the aircraft is believed to have crashed, said Zainul Thahar, a spokesman for the search and rescue agency.

The New York Times report continues:

He said the agency had “detected a signal” pinpointing the location of the missing aircraft, but he declined to indicate whether the signal was from one of the plane’s black boxes or another homing device. He said the agency would hold a news conference in Jakarta at 4 p.m. local time on Monday to discuss further details.

 “We can only say we have located the alleged location of the plane, but not any debris,” Mr. Zainul said. “This is a remote area and hard to get to.”

In addition to a search team traveling on foot, he said, two search aircraft were flying above the terrain looking for wreckage.

News outlets indicated that search teams spotted debris early Monday that was thought to be from the missing flight, but officials from the search and rescue agency declined to confirm the reports.

The short-haul airliner, operated by Trigana Air Service, left Jayapura, the capital of Papua Province, on Sunday afternoon. It was bound for Oksibil, about 170 miles to the south. The plane lost contact with air traffic controllers about 30 minutes after takeoff, said Toha, a spokesman at the command center of Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency, in Jakarta.

The plane was carrying 49 passengers, including two children and three infants, along with five crew members from Trigana, said Mr. Toha, who, like many Indonesians, goes by one name.