Basarnas Deploys Boeing Surveillance To Comb Timika-Asmat Waters Searching For Contact Loss Of Image XX Ships

The joint SAR team held a coordination meeting to search for the LCT Citra XX ship that lost contact on its way from Timika to Lokpon, Yahukimo Regency, Tuesday (23/7/2024). ANTARA/HO-Basarnas.

JAKARTA - The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) deployed a Boeing surveillance aircraft to assist the process of searching for the landing boat tank (LCT) Citra XX, which lost contact while sailing around the Timika-Yahukimo waters, Papua. Basarnas Operations Director Edy Prakoso said the surveillance aircraft belonging to the Indonesian Air Force was scheduled to start sweeping around Timika- Asmat waters on the fourth day of the SAR operation. However, due to the current weather it is still raining and foggy, the joint SAR team is still on standby at Mozes Kilangi Timika Airport. "The joint SAR operation will be carried out immediately when the weather conditions have improved again," he said in Jakarta, Antara, Tuesday, July 23. He explained that the deployment of the Boeing 737-200 reconnaissance aircraft was based on the considerations of the Basarnas and the Indonesian Air Force. The SAR team hopes that the search operation can be more progress after deploying the aircraft which has the completeness of advanced equipment instruments and high resolution cameras. That way every location that should be believed to be the existence of the landing ship tank Citra XX will look clearer and can be found soon. Reports from the joint SAR team at the location found that the uncertain condition of sea waters in Papua made SAR operations difficult to carry out if they only used ordinary air monitoring devices. On the other hand, Edy ensured that operations by sweeping deep sea waters around Timika-Asmat were still being carried out until now using the KRI Teluk Lada 521 ship. Previously, it was reported that Basarnas received a report regarding the LCT Citra XX ship lost contact on its way from Timika to Lokpon, Yahukimo Regency on Friday (19/7). The ship with 12 cruise crews carried materials for the construction of the BAKTI Base Transceiver Station (BTS) of the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information Technology with the aim of going to Yahukimo Regency, Papua Mountains and is scheduled to arrive on Thursday (18/7).

The Timika SAR office gathered from the 12 crew members of the ship known as Dedi Irawan (mualim), M Arif Efendi, Haikal, Rusli, Agiera, Nimrot, Lukman Hakim, Samsudin, Asmoro, Suherman, Alhakim, and Junaidi (as the captain).