What happened
On 16 April 2026, an Airbus Helicopters EC130 T2, registration PK-CFX, crashed in a hilly region of West Kalimantan, Indonesia. The aircraft, operated by PT Matthew Air Nusantara, was performing an unscheduled passenger flight from a landing spot in Melawi to Kubu Raya. The flight was carrying one pilot and seven passengers, including an aircraft engineer.
During the flight, which was conducted under Visual Flight Rules (VFR), the helicopter'-s position stopped updating on the flight-following system at approximately 0812 LT. Following an Emergency Locator Transmitter (ELT) signal, search and rescue teams located the wreckage at 1402 LT in a steep, hilly area at an elevation of roughly 1,500 feet. The impact was not survivable, resulting in 8 fatalities.
The investigation
Investigators examined the flight planning and operational procedures of the operator. The investigation established that while the pilot had signed off on the flight dispatch, the documentation lacked specific weather forecasts for the intended route, relying instead on broad satellite imagery and outdated reports from a distant airport.
Furthermore, the investigation looked into the company's route documentation. It was found that the operator's manual did not provide a specific route guide or minimum altitude requirements for the path between the departure and destination points. The aircraft was flying at a planned altitude of 1,500 feet, despite the presence of terrain in the flight path reaching elevations of approximately 2,800 feet.
Findings
- The flight plan failed to account for minimum terrain clearance requirements, as the planned altitude was significantly lower than the surrounding peaks.
- Meteorological data used for dispatch was insufficient, as it did not include specific enroute forecasts, increasing the risk of encountering unexpected weather.
- The operator's route guides lacked essential information regarding minimum flight altitudes for specific operational sectors.
- The aircraft was not equipped with HF radio, preventing communication with the Jakarta Flight Information Center.