Jayapura: A plane carrying 48 people skidded off the runway in Indonesia’s Papua region on Monday morning, according to local police. The incident resulted in injuries to several passengers, although all on board survived.
The ATR-42 aircraft, operated by Trigana Air, was departing from an airport in the Yapen Islands regency bound for the Papuan capital of Jayapura when it veered off the runway. The flight included 42 passengers, among them a baby, and six crew members, reports Xinhua news agency.
“Praise God, everybody survived and has been taken to a hospital for a health checkup,” said local police chief Ardyan Ukie Hercahyo. He added that an investigation into the incident is underway and authorities are working to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
The local search and rescue agency reported that some passengers sustained injuries and are experiencing trauma as a result of the accident.
Indonesia’s aviation sector faces significant challenges, particularly in the mountainous and weather-challenged terrain of Papua. The region is notoriously difficult to access, with air transport being a crucial link between the country’s thousands of islands.
This incident also recalls a tragic event in 2015, when a Trigana Air plane crashed in Papua, resulting in the deaths of all 54 people on board.
(IANS)
