Search and rescue teams in Indonesia are currently navigating some of the most treacherous terrain on the planet. It’s been a rough 24 hours. Honestly, the news coming out of South Sulawesi is grim. We now have a clearer picture of who died in the plane crash today, or rather, the victims from the Indonesia Air Transport flight that went down late Saturday and was reached by ground crews this Sunday, January 18, 2026.
Thick fog is making everything impossible. Imagine standing on a mountain ridge where you can’t see five meters in front of your face. That’s what the Basarnas (Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency) teams are dealing with on the slopes of Mount Bulusaraung.
What Really Happened With the ATR 42-500?
The plane, a turboprop ATR 42-500, was on a mission that sounds routine but ended in tragedy. It wasn't a standard commercial hop. It was an airborne maritime surveillance mission for the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries.
They took off from Yogyakarta. Their destination was Makassar.
Everything seemed fine until about 1:17 p.m. local time on Saturday. Air traffic control (ATC) gave the pilots instructions to correct their alignment for the approach. Then, silence. The radar blip just vanished near the Leang-Leang area of Maros.
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The Names of the Victims
We have the manifest now. It’s heavy to read. There were 11 people on that plane—eight crew members and three passengers. While rescuers have only physically recovered one body so far—a male found in a 200-meter deep ravine—they have spotted other remains along a steep cliff that is currently inaccessible due to the weather.
The crew members identified in the flight documents include:
- Captain Andy Dahananto
- Captain Sukardi
- Yudha Mahardika
- Hariadi
- Franky D Tanamal
- Junaidi
- Florencia Lolita
- Esther Aprilita
The three passengers, who were officials with the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, are:
- Deden
- Ferry
- Yoga
It’s just a list of names until you realize these were people out there trying to protect Indonesia's maritime borders.
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Why the recovery is stalled
The terrain is a nightmare. Brigadier General Andre Clift Rumbayan, who is leading the specialized search units, basically said the team is stuck. They can see the wreckage. They can see the bodies. But the wind is so strong and the slope is so vertical that they had to call off the "vertical descent" (rappelling down) for today.
Basically, the "Rescue Unit 3" team reached the summit but the clouds moved in so fast they were effectively blinded.
A Pattern of Aviation Tragedy?
You’ve probably noticed that plane crashes seem to be hitting the headlines more lately. Just a week ago, the music world was rocked by the death of Colombian singer Yeison Jiménez, who died in a crash in Boyacá.
Is flying getting more dangerous? Not necessarily, but Indonesia has always had a "sorta" complicated relationship with aviation safety. The archipelago is huge. Over 17,000 islands. You have to fly. But the combination of aging regional fleets and some of the most unpredictable tropical weather in the world makes for a high-risk environment.
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What Most People Get Wrong About These Crashes
Whenever a plane goes missing in the mountains, people immediately blame the engines or the age of the aircraft. But in cases like Mount Bulusaraung, it's usually CFIT—Controlled Flight Into Terrain.
That’s a technical way of saying the plane was working fine, but the pilots couldn't see the mountain through the clouds. When ATC told the flight to "correct its approach alignment," it suggests they might have already been slightly off course in a region where the peaks don't give you a second chance.
Next Steps for the Investigation
The flight data recorder (the "black box") hasn't been recovered yet. That's the priority for Monday morning. Once the fog clears—if it clears—the teams will use ropes to reach the ravine floor.
The South Sulawesi police have already set up a Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) team in Makassar. They are asking family members of the crew and the ministry officials to provide DNA samples or dental records to speed up the formal identification process once the bodies are brought down the mountain.
If you are following this for updates on specific victims, the official government portal for Basarnas Makassar is the most reliable source for the minute-by-minute manifest updates. Avoid the social media rumors; the terrain is too difficult for any "citizen journalists" to be getting closer than the official military teams.
Check the weather reports for the Maros district; if the rain continues, the recovery could be pushed back another 48 hours. Keep an eye on the official Ministry of Marine Affairs statements for memorial services planned for Deden, Ferry, and Yoga.