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wo days after its muffler detached in mid-air and crashed into a house, a Riau Airlines turboprop plane was forced Wednesday to return to Polonia Airport in Medan because of another mechanical problem.

The 50-seat Fokker 50 was 20 minutes into its 45-minute flight from Polonia to Gunung Sitoli on Nias Island when it returned to the airport because of a braking system malfunction.

Riau Airlines corporate secretary Sutito Zainuddin said the problem had been fixed and the plane had resumed the flight.

“The plane is still airworthy,” he told The Jakarta Post.

Two days earlier, on the flight from Nias to Medan, a component of the plane’s exhaust system broke off in mid-air.

The muffler fell in a residential area, crashing through the roof of a house. No injuries were reported in the incident.

Following repairs, the plane was cleared for flight by the National Commission for Transportation Safety (KNKT), only to experience the problem with the braking system.

The pilot on Wednesday’s flight, Captain Naudi, said he was alerted to the problem when the anti-skid warning light began blinking.

Authorities at Polonia have laid the blame for the incident squarely with Riau Airlines.

“We’ve strongly cautioned the airline,” said airport chief Rajali Abubakar.

He deplored what he said was the company’s failure to notify airport authorities about the flight clearance.

“Although it had already been approved by the KNKT, the airline should have reported to us,” he said.
“It was only later that we heard about the problem.”

Riau Airlines’ two planes fly from Medan to Nias and Pekanbaru.

Meanwhile, over at Mopah Airport in Merauke, Papua, three Boeing 737-200s and a Twin Otter operated by Merpati Airlines have been grounded pending talks over a service extension between the airline and the local administration.

Merpati’s general manager in the provincial capital Jayapura, Sukandi, said the company was not sure when the planes would be back in operation because the negotiations were still underway.

“Some points need to be revised, and it’s very technical,” he said.

Merpati is the only airline that flies to Merauke, and the grounding left scores of passengers in limbo.

“Many passengers have gone back home from the airport,” said local resident Yohanis.

Airport chief Herson confirmed the grounding, but said Merpati had been allowed to operate one of its Boeings until the negotiations were over.

Local transportation office head Soleman Wairyo said he was unaware about the grounding.

“You’re the first people I’ve heard about this from,” he told the Post.

“With only one airline serving Merauke, I guess we should’ve seen this coming since way back.

“It’s a travesty,” he went on.

“So many airlines wanted to fly out here, but only Merpati was granted the license.”