Mariani Dewi and Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta, Bandung
In two separate incidents this week, engine problems forced two light aircraft to make emergency landings in West Java.
A Cessna 172, registration PK-SDQ, landed at Kilometer 71.4 of the Cikampek toll road Wednesday, and a Diamond DA-40 light airplane, registration PK-VVL, made an emergency landing in Ciputat on Tuesday.
There were no casualties from either incident.
The Cessna, owned by Alfa Flying School and carrying three people, departed from Halim Perdanakusumah airport in East Jakarta en route for Cirebon, West Java.
Student pilots Edo Barokah, 19, and MP Nurhuda, 31, were accompanied by instructor Ratu Fariha, 47, who decided to land the aircraft on the toll road at about 8:15 a.m. when it reportedly lost power.
The plane rolled for about 500 meters along the emergency lane before coming to a stop.
"No cars were hit because the toll road was quite empty at that time. Usually it is crowded," Robert Sitorus of state-owned toll road operator PT Jasa Marga told The Jakarta Post.
"The plane occupied only one of the two lanes so the traffic was under control," he added.
The plane was then pushed into a rest area for inspection and modifications before being towed to Halim Perdanakusumah airport at about 6 p.m.
National Transportation Safety Committee chief Tatang Kurniadi said the committee was still investigating the reason for the emergency landing, inilah.com reported.
He said the plane had met requirements and was deemed safe to fly.
In the other incident, at about 12:30 p.m. on Tuesday, a Susi Air airplane landed on a firing range in the hilly Army Infantry Training Center compound, some 40 kilometers from the West Java provincial capital Bandung.
Head of the operations section at Bandung's Husein Sastranegara airport said the airplane was carrying three people and had taken off from Halim Perdanakusumah airport in Jakarta.
"It was an emergency landing and not a crash," he said without giving further information.
Susi Air owner, Susi Pujiastuti, said the Austrian-made aircraft was on its way to Nusawiru airport in Pangandaran, Ciamis, on West Java's southern coast.
Piloted by Strunan Robertson, the airplane was carrying two mechanics to fix another Susi Air airplane that had broken down at Nusawiru airport.
"There was engine trouble during the flight and it was decided to make an emergency landing," Susi said when contacted from Bandung.
Susi said the aircraft's propeller gear was damaged after hitting the ground on the uneven grass field.
She said the National Transportation Safety Committee had been contacted for investigation purposes.
No comments:
Post a Comment