SCATTERED pieces of debris have been found after an Indonesian plane carrying 11 people onboard crashed.
Rescuers confirmed on Sunday that pieces of the aircraft’s wreckage had been located in South Sulawesi, one day after it vanished mid-flight.
New footage reveals debris strewn down a steep mountainside, reinforcing suspicions that the crash was unsurvivable with just one body found so far.
The ATR 42-500 aircraft was operated by Indonesia Air Transport for the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries.
There were eight crew members and three ministry employees on board, with their fate still officially unconfirmed.
Contact with the plane was lost at around 1:30 p.m. local time on Saturday as it flew near the Maros region while travelling from Yogyakarta to Makassar.
Helicopter crews spotted the first signs of wreckage at 7:46 a.m. on Sunday in the rugged area of Mount Bulusaraung.
Rescue teams found multiple debris sites, including broken windows and sections of fuselage scattered along the mountain slopes.
The aircraft’s tail section was later identified at the foot of the mountain range, confirming the scale of the impact.
Flightradar24 data showed the plane’s final signal was transmitted while flying at low altitude over the ocean, roughly 20 kilometres from Makassar’s Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport.
Authorities believe the aircraft crashed while approaching the airport, with terrain and weather likely complicating the flight’s final moments.
Indonesia’s National Transportation Safety Committee has launched an investigation to determine the cause of the crash.
Officials said the aircraft was just 12 miles from its destination when it disappeared from radar.
Local residents reported hearing a sound “like burning material” followed by a loud explosion shortly before debris was discovered.
Hikers on Mount Bulusaraung said they saw scattered wreckage, including a logo believed to belong to Indonesia Air.
Small fires were also reported burning in the area where debris was found.
Rescuers are now combing through wreckage amid growing concern that the crash “killed all 11 onboard.”
Dense fog and steep mountainous terrain have significantly slowed rescue efforts on the ground.
South Sulawesi’s Hasanuddin military commander, Maj. Gen. Bangun Nawoko, said the sightings were reported to authorities and were being verified by rescue teams attempting to reach the site.
Andi Sultan, head of the Makassar Basarnas Operations Section, said 60 search and rescue personnel had been deployed using coordinates provided by Airnav.
“We have headed to the location of the coordinates around the Leang-Leang area,” Sultan said.
Director General of Air Transport Lukman F Laisa said air traffic control had attempted to redirect the plane after it deviated from its approach path.
“The aircraft was identified not to be on the approach path it should have been, so the air traffic control gave a redirection to the crew to correct the position,” Laisa said.
He added that further instructions were issued before communication was lost and an emergency phase was declared.
Authorities said the aircraft’s low altitude near the coast limited radar coverage during its final moments.
The plane, registered as PK-THT, is owned by Indonesia Air Transport, a charter company operating long-term government contracts for marine and fisheries surveillance.
