REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, BALIKPAPAN -- A Bell 412 EP military helicopter of the Indonesian military (TNI), which lost contact on Wednesday afternoon, made an emergency landing in Long Sulit Hamlet of Malinau District, East Kalimantan.
The announcement was made by the Army Chief of Staff General Budiman.
"Due to bad weather, the pilot decided to return to Tarakan. In the middle of the route, the pilot had to make an emergency landing in Long Sulit Hamlet due to the bad weather," Budiman stated here on Thursday.
The helicopter, piloted by Captain Marpaung, had taken off from Tarakan and was bound for Long Bawan, on Wednesday, at 13.30 p.m. local time.
The helicopter was carrying seven soldiers of the Yonif 100/Raider, aimed to replace the personnel stationed on the Indonesian and Malaysian border.
The helicopter had a three-member crew comprising Captain Marpaung, Co-Pilot Second Lieutenant Muhammad Kholiq, and Sergeant Kasnianto. The seven soldiers included Eliandy Saragih, Rudianto, Said Kelihu, Heri Purnomo, Tri Gunardi, Jecky Hartoyo, and Feri Kurniawan.
"The helicopter was scheduled to arrive in Tarakan at 4.00 p.m. The pilot had tried to contact the nearest base to inform that they were going for an emergency landing at 3.00 p.m.," noted Budiman.
Budiman added that he had instructed the regional commander to prepare a search party.
The regional commander also informed the nearest personnel stationed on the flight route to search for the missing chopper.
He explained that the pilot faced difficulties during the flight due to the bad weather and decided to land in the nearest village.
"The pilot informed Chief of Village, Matius Radu, about their emergency landing. Matius then informed the Army that the helicopter and crew were in safe condition," Budiman reported.
He pointed out that the efforts to send the search and rescue team to the location were hindered by the bad weather.
The Helicopter Bell 412 EP of the TNI was a grant from the E. Kalimantan Regional Administration to the Regional Military VI Mulawarman in 2013.
The Indonesian Army noted that the helicopter had not yet completed 50 flight hours. The chopper was also controlled by a senior pilot and co-pilot who had many years of experience in flying helicopters.
"The incident was purely due to the bad weather. We are thankful to the local administration and officers who assisted us in searching the missing helicopter," Budiman stated.
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