JAKARTA - Minister of Transportation (Menhub) Dudy Purwagandhi explained in detail the chronology of the ATR 42-500 aircraft accident with registration PK-THT operated by PT Indonesia Air Transport.
Dudy explained that the ATR 42-500 aircraft was being chartered by the Ministry of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (KKP) to carry out surveillance activities in Indonesian waters.
Furthermore, Dudy said the ATR 42-500 aircraft carried out a flight from Yogyakarta to Makassar carrying 10 people in the flight manifest, consisting of 7 crew members and 3 passengers from the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries.
"At 12.23 (WIT), the Makassar Area Terminal Service Center or MATSC Air Traffic Control directed the aircraft to approach the Pacu Runway 21, Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport," Dudy said in a meeting with Commission V of the DPR, as reported by the Parliament TV YouTube, Tuesday, January 20.
However, Dudy continued, at the same time, ATC officers identified that the aircraft was not on the approach path it should have been.
"ATC then gave a correction position command to the crew and further instructions for the plane to return to the landing path according to procedure," said Dudy.
Shortly thereafter, communication between ATC and the aircraft was lost or lost contact. ATC immediately declared an emergency phase according to the applicable procedures.
Then, AirNav Indonesia together with MATSC then coordinated with Basarnas, TNI, Polri, provincial and district governments, and related agencies to form a crisis center at Sultan Hasanuddin Airport, Makassar.
Dudy said the joint search operation began on Sunday, January 18, 2026 at 06.15 WIB by deploying a drone belonging to the Indonesian Air Force in the Balusaraung Mountain area, the border of Maros Regency and Pangkajene Kepulauan Regency (Pangkep), South Sulawesi.
Furthermore, Dudy said at 07.46 WIT the Joint SAR Team visually identified the aircraft debris in the form of a window as an early marker of the accident location. Three minutes later, a large debris was found which was suspected to be part of the fuselage along with its tail.
"At 10.05 WIT a press conference was held under the coordination of Basarnas with TNI, Polri, KNKT, Ministry of Transportation, AirNav, and airline operators," said Dudy.
Dudy said, at 11.59 WIT, the Basarnas Crisis Center Command Post received a report of the discovery of one male body and an evacuation process was immediately carried out. Then at 18.30 WIT, a coordination meeting was held with the Chairman of Basarnas and all related agencies to monitor the SAR operation.
On Monday, January 19, 2026, all parties concerned again coordinated at the nearest post of the incident location, which is in Balocci District, Pangkajene Kepulauan Regency, South Sulawesi.
"At the time of our visit, the weather conditions at the location were quite thick. From morning to afternoon it rained, making it very difficult for the rescue team to carry out their work," said Dudy.
In addition to the weather, the terrain of the accident location is also said to be very extreme. "The terrain is quite steep with a slope of almost 70 to 80 degrees, slippery and rainy, making it difficult for the rescue team," he said.
Dudy also revealed that on Monday, January 19, one more body of a female victim was found. All parts of the plane that were found will be collected at Hasanuddin Air Base for identification purposes.
"Currently, there are around 1,200 officers who are carrying out search efforts at the scene," he said.
The English, Chinese, Japanese, Arabic, and French versions are automatically generated by the AI. So there may still be inaccuracies in translating, please always see Indonesian as our main language. (system supported by DigitalSiber.id)
