Susi Air co-pilot dies in airplane crash

A Spanish co-pilot, Albert Citores Gallego, working with Susi Air died in an airplane crash in Nabire, Papua, on Wednesday morning.

“Both were alive when we first evacuated them. Albert died later, while [the pilot] Jessi is in critical condition,” National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) spokesperson Gagah Prakoso told The Jakarta Post on Wednesday.

The Twin Otter passenger aircraft belonging to Susi Air was a cargo plane, whose only passengers were its two foreign pilots.

The plane was en route from Nabire to Sugapa Airport in the Bintang Mountains, Papua. The plane crashed while attempting to land.

Susi Air’s corporate secretary Yogi said Wednesday that the plane had been ready to land, but the runway was not clear, so the plane ascended skywards.

Gagah said the agency had evacuated the aircraft, which was found dozens of miles from Supaga Airport.