JAKARTA (AFP, REUTERS) - An Indonesian military transport plane crashed on Tuesday shortly after take-off in a city on Sumatra island, exploding in a ball of flames and damaging nearby buildings.
There was no immediate information on the number of people on board or any casualties on the ground after the C-130 Hercules plane went down in the city of Medan. Metro TV reported there may have been 13 people on board.
Dramatic pictures on social media showed large crowds and emergency services gathering around the flaming wreckage, with the fuselage of the aircraft visible among thick plumes of black smoke. Buildings in the vicinity of the crash zone were also clearly damaged.
“A Hercules was... transporting military logistics from Medan,” military spokesman Fuad Basya told AFP. The plane took off at 12.08 pm (1.08 pm Singapore) from an air force base and crashed in the city about two minutes later about five kilometres from the base, he said.
Asked about potential casualties, Mr Fuad said: “We don’t know for sure but inside there will be the plane crew, pilot, but I don’t know how many.”
A doctor at a Medan hospital, told Reuters only patients with light injuries had so far been received.
The plane was on its way from an air force base in Medan to the remote Natuna islands and crashed a few minutes after takeoff, Mr Fuad said. Media said the pilot had asked to return because of technical problems.
Already a subscriber? Log in
Get 20% OFF The Star Digital Access
Cancel anytime. Ad-free. Unlimited access with perks.
