Days after an Indonesia Air Transport plane vanished mid-flight, authorities have recovered the bodies of everyone who was on board, bringing a grim end to an intense search effort in South Sulawesi.
Indonesia’s national search-and-rescue agency, Basarnas, confirmed that the remaining bodies from the Jan. 17 crash were found on Friday, Jan. 23, according to reports from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and Reuters. Officials said a total of 10 people were killed — seven crew members and three passengers — correcting earlier reports that listed 11 victims.
Andi Sultan, an official with South Sulawesi’s rescue agency, announced in an emotional video that the final two bodies had been located, though evacuation efforts were still underway at the time.
The turboprop aircraft disappeared from radar during what was supposed to be a roughly two-hour flight from Yogyakarta to Makassar. According to previous reporting from the Associated Press and Indonesia’s Antara news agency, the plane last made contact with air traffic control at 1:17 p.m. local time.
Shortly after losing contact, officials said the aircraft was believed to have gone down in the Maros region of South Sulawesi. Search teams were quickly deployed, splitting into multiple groups to comb the rugged terrain.
Wreckage was eventually found scattered across the slopes of Mount Bulusaraung, located more than 900 miles northeast of Jakarta. Rescuers recovered debris from multiple locations, including parts of the aircraft’s frame, passenger seats, and what is believed to be the engine of the ATR 42-500 turboprop.
Two victims were found in the days immediately following the crash. The first body was discovered about 200 meters down a steep mountainside amid scattered debris. A second victim, identified as a woman, was recovered the following day, according to officials.
The remaining victims were located after days of difficult recovery work in challenging conditions, bringing the total number of recovered bodies to 10.
According to Reuters, the passengers on board were government ministry staff members. Indonesia Air Transport and Basarnas have been contacted for comment.
The Jan. 17 tragedy marked Indonesia’s first fatal crash involving an ATR 42 aircraft in more than a decade, according to ABC. Investigators have not yet released information on what caused the plane to go down as recovery efforts continue and authorities begin piecing together the final moments of the flight.