Captain Iriyanto: Pilot of AirAsia flight QZ8501

Captain Iriyanto: Pilot of AirAsia flight QZ8501

INDONESIA: AirAsia flight QZ8501, which went missing en-route from Indonesia to Singapore, was piloted by Captain Iriyanto, an Indonesian, while First Officer Emmanuel Remi Plesel was a French citizen.

Experts have suggested that the plane, with 162 on board, may have been brought down by bad weather. The weather along the route was considered "quite bad" when contact with the plane was lost at 6.24am (Indonesia time). Just before contact was lost, Capt Iriyanto had also requested permission from Air Traffic Control to alter its route and climb to 38,000 feet so as to avoid clouds.

FORMER F-5 TIGER PILOT

Capt Iriyanto is an experienced pilot. AirAsia Indonesia's communications manager Malinda Yasmin said Capt Iriyanto had logged 20,537 hours of flight time; 6,053 of which were with AirAsia. First officer Emmanuel Plesel Remi had logged 2,247 flight hours.

Capt Iriyanto was with the air force before he leaving for the commercial sector, beginning with Merpati Airways.

"He used to be a fighter pilot. And after leaving the air force, he flew Fokker aircraft for Merpati," said National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS) chief Bambang Soelistyo on Sunday (Dec 28). According to Mr Sulistyo, Capt Iriyanto also flew the F-5 Tiger and served in Squandron 14 of the Iswahjudi Air Force Base.

Before joining AirAsia, Capt Iriyanto was a pilot with Adam Air. He moved to AirAsia after Adam Air went bankrupt in March 2008. Adam Air was previously in the spotlight after one of their planes crashed near Majene, Sulawesi. It was later revealed that the airline failed to meet safety standards, and its license was revoked by authorities.

A PILOT IN MOURNING

Capt Iriyanto was grieving just before he flew QZ8501, a family member said. One of Iriyanto's sisters, Edi, had died a few days before the ill-fated AirAsia flight departed.

Just three days before QZ8501 departed, Capt Iriyanto was in Yogyakarta to meet his younger brothers. Mr Hendro Kusumo Broto, one of Capt Iriyanti's cousins, said that it was a painful time for the whole family after being hit with two tragedies in a row - first the loss of Edi, and now Iriyanto.

"It's like being punched twice, but what can we do? This is an ordeal we must overcome," said Mr Hendro. Mr Hendro added that he last met Capt Iriyanto three days ago when he was in Yogyakarta.

A DAUGHTER'S WISH

Capt Iriytanto's daughter Angela has uploaded a photo of her father onto her Path account, together with a heartfelt plea for her father to return home.

"Papa come home, brother still needs you ... Please return, papa. Papa must meet us and come home," Angela wrote.

- Merdeka.com/ac


- wong chee tat :)