Update: As of January 10, we have confirmation of the unfortunate fact that authorities found plane wreckage and human remains as they continued their search.
Most of us saw 2020 go by with minimal or no travel. We were all hoping for 2021 to be better. However, a concerning news report is just breaking out of Indonesia. Indonesian aviation authorities are reporting that a flight has gone missing. As per Flightradar24, the flight was carrying anywhere between 56 to 62 passengers and was supposed to fly from Jakarta to Pontianak.
Boeing 737 flight goes missing
Flightradar 24 tweeted out the details of the missing flight.
This is what we know about Sriwijaya Air flight #SJ182 based on ADS-B data.
Route: Jakarta to Pontianak
Callsign: SJY182
Aircraft: Boeing 737-500, PK-CLC
Take off: 07:36 UTC
Highest altitude: 10,900 feet
Last altitude: 250 feet
Signal lost: 07:40 UTChttps://t.co/fNZqlIR2dz pic.twitter.com/CPzFJdsuJZ— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) January 9, 2021
As per Bloomberg, the flight supposedly took off from Jakarta at 1:40 PM local time. However, after 2:40 pm, the authorities could not make any further contact.
Flight SJ182, a 26-year-old Boeing Co. 737-500, was scheduled to depart from the nation’s capital to Pontianak on the island of Borneo at 1:40 p.m. local time, according to FlightRadar24 data. It had 56 passengers on board, along with two pilots and four cabin crew, MetroTV reported.
However, it seems like the flight lost over 10,000 feet of altitude after takeoff, in just a single minute.
Sriwijaya Air flight #SJ182 lost more than 10.000 feet of altitude in less than one minute, about 4 minutes after departure from Jakarta.https://t.co/fNZqlIR2dz pic.twitter.com/MAVfbj73YN
— Flightradar24 (@flightradar24) January 9, 2021
The Pundit’s Mantra
The situation remains fluid and Indonesian authorities have launched efforts to find the missing flight. Firstly, they’ve sent out a search vessel from Jakarta to the plane’s last known location. Secondly, authorities have also deployed first responders.
We’re hoping to hear and official update soon.
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Sadly a typical example of how corruption affects every day citizens. Indonesia has a poor record on aviation safety.
I wouldnt be surprised to know that the authorities had been paid off by the airline.