Agence France Presse

Jakarta, April 12:

A twin-engine passenger plane with 18 people aboard crashed today in West Papua province, officials said. The 19-seat deHavilland DHC-6 Twin Otter turboprop crashed during a flight along the mountainous interior of Indonesia’s largest province, which shares New Guinea island with neighbouring Papua New Guinea, police said. “We lost contact with the plane carrying 14 adult passengers, a baby and three crew members, and now we are searching the location of the crash,” Timika Police Chief Lt Col Paulus Waterpau said. The Canadian-built plane operated by GT Air — a regional airline owned by the local administration — was on its way to the airstrip at the village of Enarotali in the central highlands, he said.