Tarakan's Foreign Aircraft Intrusion Still Being Investigated: Indonesian Military

Balikpapan, S Kalimantan, (Antara) - The Indonesian Air Force (TNI-AU) investigators on Tuesday continued their probe into the intrusion of a light aircraft piloted by US Navy Lieutenant Colonel James Patrick Murphy, a military officer stated.

"The pilot is still being questioned at the Tarakan Airbase, and we are treating him well," Spokesman of the Mulawarman Regional Military Command Colonel Andi Gunawan stated here on Tuesday.

The company leasing the Cessna propeller engine aircraft, with registration number N96706 that Murphy piloted, had yet to notify a permit for using an emergency route while flying from the Philippines to Singapore, he affirmed.

The pilot revealed to TNI investigators that he had attempted to avoid bad weather, but both the US embassy in Jakarta and the aircraft leasing company could not confirm about the air space violation, he clarified.

When questioned about Murphy's status as a US Navy personnel, he replied that the Tarakan Airbase authority was still awaiting the results of the security clearance procedure being handled by the TNI headquarters.

The Cessna propeller engine aircraft was forced to land by two TNI Sukhoi jet fighters at 2:31 p.m. local time on Monday in Tarakan, North Kalimantan.

According to an initial investigation, the Cessna aircraft was piloted by Murphy, a US Navy Reserve who was on leave. He took off from Hawaii to the Philippines and was headed to Singapore.

However, he violated the Indonesian airspace during the flight to Singapore.(*)