Pangkalpinang, Bangka Belitung, (ANTARA News)- A Lion Air plane with a flight number JT610 and 189 people on board, crashed in Tanjung Kerawang waters, West Java Province, after flying for 13 minutes from Jakarta toward Pangkalpinang, Bangka Belitung Province, on Monday morning.

"It has been confirmed that the plane crashed in Tanjung Kerawang waters," Erzaldi Rosman Djohan, Bangka Belitung Governor, told the press here, Monday.

The airplane departed from Jakarta at 06:20 a.m local time and was scheduled to arrive in Pangkalpinang at 07:05 a.m local time, according to the Depati Amir airport authority in Pangkalpinang.

Before it lost contact, the airplane had asked for a permission to return to Jakarta due to a problem

The airplane carried 178 adult passengers, three infants, and six crew members and two pilots.

The Indonesian authorities have set up an emergency command post at the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport in Cengkareng, to deal with the accident.

Reporting by Ahmadi
Editing by Fardah

Reporter: Antara
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
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