page_title: 2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash
section_title: Search and rescue
hierarchical_section_title: 2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash / Search and rescue
caption_attribution_description: English: Wreckage of the crash in Batam, 2016
context_page_description: On 3 December 2016, a PZL M28 Skytruck of the Indonesian National Police disappeared above the South China sea while approaching Hang Nadim Airport in Riau Islands. The aircraft was conducting a flight from Depati Amir Airport in Pangkal Pinang, the capital of Bangka Belitung province. The aircraft was carrying three pilots and ten passengers with no survivors on the aircraft. A search and rescue team was assembled by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency with assistance from Singapore.
context_section_description: Immediately after the crash, debris began to float to the surface. At 12:30 local time, fishermen from Kijang recovered a blue piece of debris suspected from the aircraft. They also recovered several seats and personal belongings. Body parts were also found. The fishermen stated that they found the debris around 40 nautical miles from Kijang, the seat capital of Tanjung Pinang.
  A search and rescue team was immediately assembled by the National Search and Rescue Agency.
  Tanjung Pinang's SAR team deployed two of its boats to search for the wreckage of the aircraft. The search was led by the Head of Riau Islands Regional Police. Police had also deployed four boats in response to the crash. The Indonesian Navy also sent its ships in response to the crash, the KRI Cucut and the KRI Pattimura. Search team members stated that they had only found several personal belongings from the victims, including photos of the passengers of the aircraft. The search and rescue effort was hampered by bad weather. The head of the operation Sam Budigusdian stated that the operation was stalled as no aircraft was allowed to fly due to the inclement weather. In addition, communications in the area were limited.
  Mutilated bodies and a full body were found near the crash site at 17:55 local time along with an oil slick at a depth of 24 meters.
  The following day another three ships, from the Indonesian customs service, joined the operation. The search and rescue operation became an international effort, as Singapore joined the operation with an aircraft and a helicopter. Investigators from National Transportation Safety Committee (NTSC) also joined the search. According to the head of the National Search and Rescue Agency, at least 300 personnel and 15 ships were involved in the search and rescue operation.
  The search area was widened to 200 square nautical miles. Officials stated that the search area was focused around Mantang and Kijang. The location of the detected oil slick on 3 December was pin pointed by officials. An analysis by officials revealed that the sea where the aircraft had crashed was shallow, at a depth of 23–32 meters.
  Divers were deployed to join the operation. According to eyewitnesses, the aircraft dived and struck the water nose-first. Based on analysis on the debris, most debris found by the search and rescue team were parts of the front section of the aircraft. Officials stated that the front part of the aircraft may have been shattered during the impact. Officials added that they suspect that most bodies were trapped inside the submerged wreckage.
  Governor of Riau Islands Nurdin Basirun and high ranking commander Fahri joined the search and rescue operation. Governor Nurdin Basirun later ordered fishermen to join the search and rescue effort, stating that "their eyes are more accurate". He asked fishermen to report to local authorities if they found any personal belongings or wreckage from the sea.
  The area that was focused during the search and rescue operation was an area between four islands, which were Pulau Pintar, Pulau Sebangka, Pulau Senayang and Pulau Menasak. Officials stated that the bodies of the missing passengers and the debris of the aircraft couldn't have been swept far away from the main wreckage as sea current and wind force around the area was not strong enough to swept the wreckage. However, according to Soelistyo, the head of the National Search and Rescue Agency, though the main wreckage was located in Indonesia, the flight recorders could have been swept away to the Singaporean territory. He then asked the Singaporean Government for their cooperation in finding the recorders.
  The search was continued on 5 December 2016. By then four bodies had been found. Commissioner Erlangga stated that the aircraft's tail was planned to be raised from the sea at 10:00 local time. The 3-meter long piece of wreckage was found at a depth of 24 meters and was located at a coordinates of 0 17' 321" N 104 50' 518" E. The search area was also widened and added for an additional 5 km, as the retrieved bodies had moved arou
caption: Debris found by the search and rescue team during the operation
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