Apriza Pinandita, Jakarta – An Indonesian Air Force Hawk 209 jet fighter crashed in a residential area of Kampar regency, Riau, on Monday morning.
Air Force spokesman First Marshal Fajar Adriyanto confirmed that the British-built aircraft, registered as TT-0209, had departed from Rusmin Nuryadin Air Base in Pekanbaru on Monday before crashing about 5 kilometers away in Kubang Jaya village, Siak Hulu subdistrict.
The pilot, First Flight Lieutenant Apriyanto, was able to eject himself and survived the accident, Fajar said. He is being examined at Dr. Soekirman Air Force Hospital in Pekanbaru.
"We are still investigating the cause of the accident and the number of casualties," Fajar said in a text message to The Jakarta Post on Monday.Separately, Kubang Jaya village head Tarmizi said he was informed of the crash at 7:30 am and that the accident took place behind Siak Hulu 1 state junior high school. "It crashed in the residential area," he said as quoted by kompas.com.
The accident occurred days after an Air Force Mi-7 helicopter crashed in Kendal, Central Java. Four out of the nine passengers died at the location of the crash, while five others were taken to the hospital for treatment.
The fatalities from the crash increased to five after one of the survivors died on Saturday. First Lieutenant Vira Yudha died after being hospitalized for a week at Dr. Kariadi General Hospital in Semarang, kompas.com reported on Monday.
The remaining survivors, on the other hand, have shown improvements and continue to receive treatment at Dr. Kariadi Hospital and Gatot Subroto Army Hospital in Jakarta.