An Indonesian ATR 42-500 aircraft went missing near Makassar on Saturday, but is now believed to have crashed as its wreckage was spotted on a mountain, as per several media reports.
ATR has said that their specialists are fully engaged to support both the investigation led by the Indonesian authorities and the operator.
An Indonesian agency has revealed that air traffic controllers lost contact with the aircraft after 1:00 pm local time, when it was in the region of Maros, which lies in the South Sulawesi province.
The local search and rescue agency’s head told news agency AFP that teams were deployed to the mountainous area of ​​Maros Regency, which was the last known location of the plane.
The air force, police, and volunteers have taken part in the search.
Indonesia, which is a vast archipelago in Southeast Asia, is heavily dependent on air transport to connect the thousands of islands within its territory.
The country’s aviation record is poor. It has seen several deadly crashes in recent years.
In September 2025, a helicopter which had six passengers on board along with two crew members, crashed shortly after taking off from South Kalimantan province. Everyone on board died in the accident.
Less than a couple of weeks later, another chopper crashed in the Papua district of Ilaga, killing four passengers onboard.
This is a developing story. Check back later for more details.
