Jakarta: An Indonesian light plane owned
by a flying school went missing on Java Island on Wednesday with
three people on board, the transport ministry said.
The single-engine Cessna-172 owned by the Nusa Flying
International school left a military airport in Jakarta at
7:40 AM local time and lost contact at 8:53 AM, ministry
spokesman Bambang Ervan said.
"The plane was carrying two students and one flight
instructor," he said, adding that a search-and-rescue team had
been deployed to locate the plane.
"We cannot say whether it has crashed or made an
emergency landing.The plane was flying over its destination
city Cirebon when it lost contact with air traffic control,"
he said.
The plane was supposed to land at 9:33 AM local time.
A small Casa 212 plane had crashed late September on
Sumatra island, killing all 18 people on board.
The sprawling Indonesian archipelago relies heavily on
air transport and has a poor aviation record.
PTI
First Published: Wednesday, November 16, 2011, 23:31