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2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash

3 Dec 2016 · Near Dabo Singkep, Lingga regency, Riau Islands, Indonesia

Indonesian National Police PZL M28 Skytruck · Possible engine failure

From Depati Amir Airport (PGK) to Hang Nadim International Airport (BTH)

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Event

Event typeAccident: someone killed or seriously injured, or the aircraft substantially damaged (NTSB definition). Incident: an occurrence that affected or could have affected safety, short of that. Glossary
Accident
Event fatalities
13 · all aircraft and ground
Ground fatalities
Unknown
Occupants
13
Survivors
0
InjuriesFatal: death within 30 days. Serious: over 48 hours in hospital within a week, most broken bones, severe bleeding, nerve or organ damage, or serious burns. Minor: anything less. Glossary
Unknown
OperationWhat kind of flying it was, grouped by the rules it flew under: airline (US Part 121), air taxi and commuter (Part 135), general aviation (Part 91 and similar), military or government. Glossary
Government

PZL M28 Skytruck

Aircraft type
PZL M28
Category
Airplane · from aircraft type
RegistrationThe aircraft's tail number, such as N12345 or G-ABCD. Registrations are reissued, so the same one years apart can be a different aircraft. Glossary
P-4201
Onboard fatalities
13
Route
From Depati Amir Airport (PGK)To Hang Nadim International Airport (BTH)

Approximate · Coordinates from the Wikipedia article; not checked against an investigation report.

From the Wikipedia article

On 3 December 2016, a PZL M28 Skytruck of the Indonesian National Police disappeared above the South China Sea while approaching Hang Nadim Airport in Riau Islands. The aircraft was conducting a flight from Depati Amir Airport in Pangkal Pinang, the capital of Bangka Belitung province. The aircraft was carrying three pilots and ten passengers with no survivors on the aircraft. A search and rescue team was assembled by the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency with assistance from Singapore.

Accident

The aircraft was transporting 13 people consisting of 10 passengers and 3 crew. All of them were members of the Indonesian National Police.

The aircraft took off from Depati Amir Airport at 09:24 local time and was en route to Hang Nadim Airport in Batam, Riau Islands. The aircraft was expected to land in Batam at 10:58 local time. While flying above the Senayang Sea, a technical issue occurred. Smoke was seen emitting from the aircraft's engine. Local fishermen who saw the crash stated that shortly after the first smoke came out from the engine, the aircraft nose-dived and plunged onto the sea.

Investigation and cause

Investigation

Eyewitnesses claimed that the aircraft's engine was emitting smoke or fire. The aircraft later nose-dived and exploded as it plunged onto the sea. According to local fishermen, the aircraft went down at 10:22. While the aircraft was nose-diving, eyewitnesses noted that the engine made an unusual sound. There was no explosion until the aircraft struck the water. According to officials, the aircraft was airworthy and was in good condition at the time of the accident. The aircraft had been checked before the flight. Commissioner Rikwanto stated that the aircraft was not equipped with flight recorders as it was not mandated to fit them, contrary to earlier reports in which the aircraft was equipped with recorders. Investigators would examine the air traffic control recordings from Singapore, Jakarta and Batam.

Text from the Wikipedia article “2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash” (revision 1360810541, retrieved 2026-09-18) by its authors, under CC BY-SA 4.0. Extracted as plain text: references, tables, images and some sections are left out. Read the article

Sources

Wikipedia article: 2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash
Article
2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash
Revision
1360810541 · 2026-06-23 · retrieved 2026-09-18
Wikidata
Q29017862
Licence
Text CC BY-SA 4.0, by the article's authors; Wikidata CC0; town positions GeoNames (CC BY 4.0)
Where each value comes from
Record
Wikipedia article "2016 Indonesian Police PZL M28 Skytruck crash" (page 53049813, revision 1360810541)
Date
Wikipedia infobox: date
Place and country
Wikipedia infobox: site
Map position
Wikipedia article coordinates
Aircraft, operator and route
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft type, registration, operator, origin and destination; route airports from the linked airport articles' Wikidata codes (OurAirports)
Operation
government agency named in the article title
Fatalities
Wikipedia infobox: aircraft fatalities
Ground fatalities
not stated in the Wikipedia infobox
Summary
Wikipedia infobox: summary
Source notes (1)
  • Wikipedia · Facts from the Wikipedia article's infobox and coordinates, not checked against an investigation report. Independent review pending.