Indonesia Military Transport Plane Crashes In Medan; Dozens Dead - LEX18 Lexington KY News
MEDAN, Indonesia (AP) - An Indonesian air force transport plane plowed into a residential neighborhood in the country's third-largest city of Medan shortly after takeoff on Tuesday, killing dozens of people. North Sumatra police chief Eko Hadi Sutedjo told reporters that the plane was carrying 50 people based on its manifest. But air force chief Air Marshall Agus Supriatna said there was uncertainty about the total number of people on board because the plane had traveled from the capital, Jakarta, and stopped at two locations before arriving at Medan. Sutedjo said 37 bodies have been transported to Medan's Adam Malik hospital and include a child who was probably about a year old. None of the bodies has been identified and it's unclear how many of the victims are military personnel and how many are civilians, Sutedjo said. The crash of the transport plane, which had been in service since 1964, occurred just two minutes after it took off from Soewondo air force base. Supriatna, the air force chief, said the pilot told the control tower that the plane needed to turn back because of engine trouble. "The plane crashed while it was turning right to return to the airport," he said. Source: www.lex18.com
