The plane with four passengers onboard belonging to PT Intan Angkasa.
Samarinda (ANTARA News) - A survey aircraft that when missing near Mount Pilar Sangatta in East Kutai, East Kalimantan on Friday (Aug 24), was found wrecked and burnt, police said here on Sunday night.

The province`s deputy police chief, Brigadier General Rusli Nasution told the press on Sunday night that the ill-fated plane was firstly found by two personnel of mobile brigade police and a member of the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) on Sunday at about 5.25 pm local time.

The plane with four passengers onboard belonging to PT Intan Angkasa was reported missing Friday afternoon when it was carrying out a mapping activity in mining area around the East Kalimantan city of Bontang.

The PA31 Piper Navajo Chief Tain type aircraft which was being flown by Captain Marshal Basir had three passengers on board namely, Peter John Elliott, the general manager of Elliot Geophysics International, Jandri Hendrizal, a surveyor and a Captain Suyono from the Defense Ministry.

According to the Samarinda district Military Commander Lt Col (inf) Junaidi M, four helicopters were deployed on Sunday to conduct a search for the missing plane that was predicted to have crashed in the Kutai National Park area on Friday.

"There are four helicopters prepared to conduct search for the missing chartered aircraft, consisting of one Army`s helicopter (MI 17), one of the regional police`s and two helicopters of PT Intan Angkasa," Junaidi M said.

Report said the plane took off from the Temindung airport in Samarinda on Friday at around 7:51 a.m. and was confirmed missing at about 1:51 p.m.

"The plane was expected to fly for four hours and return to Temindung at around 12:00 p.m. to refuel for another six-hour flight," the airport`s air traffic leader Rora Ardian said.

The plane reportedly flew at a height of between 500 feet to 3,000 feet over the survey area in Bontang.

However, several minutes after taking off the plane lost contact and is believed to have crashed in an area, which is a designated national park.
(Uu.B003)

Editor: Priyambodo RH
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