Pilot, co-pilot killed in Indonesian Navy's small plane crash

Coast guards participate in a search operation of a small military plane after crash at Madura Strait in East Java, Indonesia, Sept. 8, 2022. The pilot and the co-pilot of a small plane of the Indonesian Navy were killed after the plane went down into the water off East Java province on Wednesday, Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Navy Admiral Yudo Margono said on Thursday. TO GO WITH "Pilot, co-pilot killed in Indonesian Navy's small plane crash" (Photo by Kurniawan/Xinhua)

JAKARTA, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- The pilot and the co-pilot of a small plane of the Indonesian Navy were killed after the plane went down into the water off East Java province on Wednesday, Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Navy Admiral Yudo Margono said on Thursday.

"Both of them (the pilot and the co-pilot) were dead," the admiral told a press conference.

The plane, a G-36 Bonanza T-2503, crashed in the Madura Strait of the province during an air defense exercise in the water, according to the navy.

Margono said that the bodies of the pilot and the co-pilot remained inside the plane when the wreckage of the aircraft was found.

"Both of them still sat on the chairs of the plane. The wreckage was already lifted this (Thursday) morning from the seafloor," said Margono.

The Indonesian navy deployed ships, helicopters and divers in a search operation to find the wreckage and the two personnel, but strong currents occurring on the scene on Wednesday hampered the mission, according to the admiral. 

Navy personnel prepare for a search operation of a small military plane after crash at Madura Strait in East Java, Indonesia, Sept. 8, 2022. The pilot and the co-pilot of a small plane of the Indonesian Navy were killed after the plane went down into the water off East Java province on Wednesday, Chief of Staff of the Indonesian Navy Admiral Yudo Margono said on Thursday. TO GO WITH "Pilot, co-pilot killed in Indonesian Navy's small plane crash" (Photo by Kurniawan/Xinhua)