Jayapura, Jubi – The Papua Police have released the names of the passengers and pilots on board the SAM Air Cessna 208 Caravan 675 aircraft with call sign PK-SMW that crashed in Yalimo Regency, Mountainous Papua Province on Friday, June 23, 2023.
The aircraft, owned by PT Semuwa Aviasi Mandiri airline, was piloted by Hari Permadi, with copilot Levi Murib. The four passengers on board were Bartolomeus (34), Ebeth Halerohon (29), Dormina Halerohon (17), and Kilimputni (20).
According to Papua Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Ignatius Benny Ady Prabowo, the plane crashed 12 kilometers east of Elelim Airport. The Yalimo Police chief is currently coordinating with relevant parties for the evacuation process.
The plane departed from Elelim Airport at 11:10 a.m. Papua time and was heading to Poik Village, Welarek District. However, it had not arrived or made contact by 12:20 p.m., leading to its declaration as missing.
The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) team from Wamena discovered the plane in Mabualem, Yalimo, on fire during a search conducted with the Intan Angkasa helicopter on Friday afternoon.
Another joint search and rescue team, utilizing the Carcal Helicopter owned by the Air Force, has relocated to the hill near Mount Mabualem, Welarek District. From there, they will proceed on foot to the crash site.
All the victims will be transported to Bhayangkara Hospital for identification by the Papua Police Disaster Victim Identification Team, said Ignatius Benny Ady Prabowo on Sunday. (*)
