Australian, South African Killed in Indonesia Plane Crash

A South African pilot and his Australian passenger were killed when their Susi Air plane crashed in eastern Indonesia, officials said Thursday, in the airline’s third fatal accident in a year. They were the only people on board the Pilatus PC-6 aircraft, which was carrying the Australian photographer on a chartered flight, the airline’s operations director Christian Strombeck said. “The pilot was South African and the photographer was Australian. Both were killed,” he said. “The plane crashed Wednesday at around 5:30 p.m. local time (0930 GMT), and the bodies were found at around 1:30 a.m. Thursday,” he said. “The Pilatus PC-6 aircraft was flying in East Kalimantan to do some aerial photography when it crashed,” Strombeck added. The plane went down near a village in the Kutai Kartanegara district, said Sutopo Purwo Nugroho, spokesman for the National Disaster Mitigation Agency. “The aircraft crashed at the edge of a ravine,” he said. Susi Air is a small domestic airline that operates mostly Cessna Grand Caravan planes usually configured to carry 12 passengers and two pilots. It also operates a few smaller Pilatus aircraft. In November, one of the company’s Cessna aircraft crashed while trying to land in Indonesia’s remote Papua region, killing a Spanish pilot. Another of its aircraft crashed in September in Papua province, killing an Australian and Slovakian pilot. The Indonesian archipelago of more than 17,000 island relies on air transport to reach remote areas and has a poor aviation safety record. Fri 27 April 2012 http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/update-indonesia-plane-crash-victims-identified/514196

Nadra offers AFIS help to identify disaster victims

The National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) has volunteered its services to Pakistan Army for identification of soldiers trapped in Gayari snow-slide once they are found as it is in close contact with the relevant authorities for the purpose. This has been revealed in a report submitted by the Nadra here Tuesday. According to the report it deployed its Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) Unit in the rescue and recovery operation after the Bhoja Air crash on the orders of Chairman Nadra Friday last. The DVI Unit, headed by Director General, National Data Warehouse, Syed Muzaffar Ali, provided critical assistance and technical support in the identification of the bodies of the deceased. The report claimed that in many instances, bodies are charred or decomposed beyond recognition rendering them unidentifiable through conventional means. The DVI uses its Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS) for establishing identification of the victims. The fingerprint samples taken by Nadra teams are compared with the existing records in the database and then identity is verified before handing over the remains to the respective families. The Nadra identified 7 bodies of the Bhoja air crash without delay through AFIS. It has the capacity to use facial imaging and recognition tools for identification and can help local law enforcement authorities with DNA identification as well. The first body was identified within a few hours of recovery; the speedy identification was greatly appreciated by the media and the relatives of deceased. The Nadra has previously helped in rescue and relief operations in many parts of Pakistan, including the floods of 2010, 2011 and Air Blue crash and other disasters. The report suggested that one can easily determine that if this would had not been there, many days must be needed in identification of dead bodies. In that case their relatives will have to undergo the stress and agony for fairly long time. The report noted that the federal Minister for Interior Rehman Malik and the relevant authorities appreciated the Nadra staff efforts, dedication and devotion during the rescue operation. Thursday, April 26, 2012 http://www.thenews.com.pk/Todays-News-6-105035-Nadra-offers-AFIS-help-to-identify-disaster-victims