The joint Search and Rescue (SAR) team had extended the search for  the National Police’s NBO-105 helicopter which crashed in Manggar waters, East Belitung District, Bangka Belitung Islands Province, for another three days.

Head of the Pangkal Pinang Class B SAR Office I Made Oka Astawa said in Manggar Sub-district on Sunday that the extension of the operation aimed to find the location of the helicopter pilot, Adjunct Commissioner Arif Rahman Saleh.

The SAR team has estimated that the pilot’s body is still in the helicopter cabin, bounded to his seat by the safety belt.

“It is believed that the victim is still in the chopper,” the SAR office head stated.

Earlier, he informed that on  the seventh day of the operation  on Saturday  the team deployed 20 divers to optimize the search for the crashed helicopter.

“We dove (to find the victim) at seven determined locations,” he said.

He noted that in addition to the divers, the search was carried out by air using one helicopter of the National Police.

Meanwhile, 20 ships were deployed to look for the victim on the water surface.

Furthermore, three ships of the Indonesian Navy’s Hydro-Oceanography Center (Pushidrosal) were also dispatched to conduct underwater search.

“The underwater search uses various electronic equipment, such as the MBES (Multibeam Echosounder), SSS (side scan sonar) and magnetometers, to cover about 50 percent of the planned searching area,” Astawa informed.

He has expected that the body of Arif Rahman Saleh can be found soon.

The NBO-105/P-1103 helicopter of the Aerial and Water Corps (Polairud) of the Security Maintenance Agency (Baharkam) of the National Police was reported missing in Manggar waters on November 27, 2022, afternoon.

The helicopter was caught in a bad weather while flying from Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan Province, to Tanjung Pandan, Bangka Belitung Islands Province.

So far, three out of the four crews of the helicopter have been found, namely First Brigadier Khoirul Anam, First Brigadier Mochamad Lasminto, and Second Adjunct Inspector Joko Mudo.

Source: Antara News