We, along with the military chief, police chief, Jakarta Metropolitan Police chief, Jakarta regional military command chief, naval chief of staff, chief of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), chief of the National Committee for TransporJakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo has ordered Transportation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi to coordinate the search for the victims and the black box of the crashed Sriwijaya Air flight SJ-182 with immediate effect.
"Mr. President has instructed me to coordinate a search for the victims and the black box immediately," he said here on Tuesday.
Sumadi said he will go straight to the humanitarian command post at the Jakarta International Container Terminal (JICT) II Pier, at Tanjung Priok Port in North Jakarta on Tuesday evening to coordinate the search operation involving several agencies.
“We, along with the military chief, police chief, Jakarta Metropolitan Police chief, Jakarta regional military command chief, naval chief of staff, chief of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), chief of the National Committee for Transportation Safety (KNKT), and the Police Hospital will, Insya Allah (God willing), implement the Presidential instruction properly," he added.
The Transportation Minister said the President has also ordered him to ensure that the families of the plane crash victims are well-served and their rights are fulfilled.
“We had called Sriwijaya Air and the life insurance company Jasa Raharja to meet with the relatives (of the plane crash victims). We have just visited the Kramat Jati Police Hospital (where the meeting took place),” he informed.
President Widodo, Sumadi said, has also instructed the Transportation Ministry and other agencies to improve flight services to prevent another plane crash in future.
"We thank the President for his moral support so we can carry out this task properly and solve problems with the families of the plane crash victims," he remarked.
The Transportation Ministry earlier confirmed that airport authorities had lost contact with the Sriwijaya Air flight SJ-182, serving the Jakarta-Pontianak route, around 2:40 p.m. local time on Saturday (January 9, 2021).
According to the ministry, the last contact with the Boeing 737-500 jet, bearing the registration number PK-CLC, was made at 11 nautical miles north of the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, after the aircraft had crossed an altitude of 11 thousand feet and was ascending to 13 thousand feet.
The plane took off from the Soekarno-Hatta Airport at 2:40 p.m. local time on Saturday and was scheduled to land at the Supadio Airport in Pontianak, West Kalimantan, at 3:50 p.m. local time.
Based on the manifest, the plane had 50 passengers and 12 crew members on board. (INE)
EDITED BY INE
Translator: Indra Arief P/Suharto
Editor: Fardah Assegaf
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
