Search and rescue teams in Indonesia are holding out hope of finding survivors from a plane crash on a remote mountainside, even after recovering the body of one victim. The aircraft, carrying 11 people, went down during a flight on Saturday, 17 January 2026.
Challenging Search in Dense Fog
The operation, involving around 100 personnel supported by the armed forces, has been severely hampered by treacherous weather conditions. Heavy rain and dense fog have reduced visibility to just five metres at the summit of Mount Bulusaraung on Sulawesi island, where the wreckage is scattered.
Major General Bangun Nawoko, military commander of South Sulawesi Hasanuddin, confirmed the adverse weather had affected movement and forced the cancellation of a planned vertical descent for safety reasons. Photos from the scene show rescuers navigating a steep, fog-shrouded ridgeline to reach the debris.
Body and Wreckage Located
On Sunday afternoon, local time, rescuers managed to recover the body of a man approximately 656 feet down a ravine on the mountain's slope. The remains were found close to the scattered debris of the Indonesia Air ATR 42 plane.
Muhammad Arif Anwar, chief of the Makassar Search and Rescue Office, stated that while the body has not yet been formally identified, it is believed to be from the aircraft. His teams also retrieved larger sections of debris consistent with the main fuselage and tail.
"The discovery of the aircraft's main sections significantly narrows the search zone and offers a crucial clue for tightening the search area," Anwar said. He added that the evacuation of the body is now underway.
Mission and Broader Context
The flight was on a surveillance mission for the Marine Affairs and Fisheries Ministry. It departed from Adisutjipto Airport and was headed to Sultan Hasanuddin International Airport when it crashed. The plane was last tracked at 1:17pm local time on Saturday.
On board were eight crew members and three ministry passengers. Indonesia, an archipelago of roughly 17,000 islands, relies heavily on air and sea transport, but has been plagued by a history of serious transport accidents over the years.
Despite the grim discovery, the rescue mission remains focused on the possibility of finding life. "Our joint search and rescue teams are now focusing on searching for the victims, especially those who might still be alive," Anwar emphasised, maintaining a thread of hope amidst the difficult conditions.
