In a country known for its challenging aviation safety record, an ATR-42 aircraft operated by Trigana Air skidded off the runway during takeoff on Monday morning. The incident occurred at an airport in the remote Yapen Islands, located in Indonesia’s Papua region, as the plane headed for Jayapura, the Papuan capital.
Onboard the flight were 42 passengers, including a baby, along with six crew members. Fortunately, no lives were lost in the accident. “Praise God everybody survived and has been taken to a hospital for a health checkup,” said local police chief Ardyan Ukie Hercahyo in an official statement. He also mentioned that an investigation is underway to prevent similar occurrences in the future.
The local search and rescue team reported that several passengers sustained injuries and were left traumatized by the event. While air transport is a vital link between the many islands of Indonesia, Papua remains a particularly difficult area to access due to its rugged, mountainous terrain and unpredictable weather conditions.
This is not the first aviation incident involving Trigana Air in Papua. In 2015, one of their planes tragically crashed in the region, claiming the lives of all 54 people on board.
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