Western Wave's video: Indonesian aeroplane loses contact after takeoff from Jakarta

A Sriwijaya Air plane reportedly carrying more than 60 people lost contact after taking off from the Indonesian capital Jakarta on Saturday. A statement released by the budget airline said the Boeing 737-500 was on an estimated 90-minute flight from Jakarta to Pontianak, the capital of West Kalimantan province on Indonesia’s Borneo island. There were 56 passengers and six crew members on board. “The missing plane is currently under investigation and under coordination with the National Search and Rescue Agency and the National Transportation Safety Committee,” Indonesian Transportation Ministry spokeswoman Adita Irawati said in a statement. “It last made contact at 2:40pm [0740 GMT].” The aircraft was carrying 56 passengers, including seven children, and six crew members, Metro TV reported. Reliable tracking service Flightradar24 said on its Twitter feed that Flight SJ182 “lost more than 10,000 feet [3,000 metres] of altitude in less than one minute, about 4 minutes after departure from Jakarta”. The aircraft is a 27-year-old Boeing 737-500, according to registration details included in the tracking data.