An Indonesian air force Lockheed Martin C-130B tactical transport aircraft was probably carrying well over 100 people when it crashed in a Medan suburb hitting a massage parlour and hotel on 30 June.
A report by Indonesia state news agency Antara says that 101 were on board, of which 12 were crew. Other reports, however, quote air force officials as saying that the total number on board could have been higher, possibly up to 122. Some reports indicate that passengers include women and children related to air force personnel. It is not clear how many people were killed on the ground.
An official statement by the Indonesian air force confirms there were 12 crew on board the aircraft, but gives no details about the other passengers.
Reports indicate that 141 bodies have been recovered from the crash site, which lies in a suburb of Medan. The aircraft crashed at midday shortly after taking off, en route to Tanjung Pinang air base. Eyewitnesses reportedly saw the aircraft flying very low with smoke billowing out before the crash.
Flightglobal was unable to reach the Indonesian air force and air safety officials about the incident.
This is Indonesia's fourth major accident involving the Hercules since 2000, and the crash itself, in addition to the uncertainty about the true number of people on the aircraft, will revive concerns about air safety in Indonesia.
In 2009, a C-130B landed short and damaged its undercarriage. All seven passengers and eight crew were uninjured, but the aircraft was written off.
In 2001 an air force Lockheed L-100-30 was lost after catching fire upon landing. All 83 passengers and 12 crew escaped. In 2009, in one of Indonesia's biggest air disasters, an L-100-30 crashed on approach to Iswahyudi Airport after a flight from Jakarta Halim Perdanakusuma airport, which resulted in 97 deaths and 15 injuries.
It also follows the crash of Indonesia AirAsia flight QZ8501 on 28 December 2014, which resulted in 162 deaths.
Flightglobal’s Ascend Fleets database shows that the aircraft - registration A-1310 - was delivered in 1961. It was upgraded to the B standard in 1980, and served 19 years before being parked from 1999 to 2004. Before the crash, it had been scheduled to receive another upgrade in 2016.
The website of the US Air National Guard’s 153rd Airlift Wing says the C-130B is designed to carry a crew of five, plus 92 passengers.
Source: FlightGlobal.com
