Officials have lost contact with a military plane that was heading to Yangon this afternoon, the office of the commander-in-chief of defense services has confirmed in a Facebook post.
The Y-8 aircraft departed this morning on a Yangon-Dawei-Myeik-Bokpyin-Myeik-Yangon route. On its return, it arrived in Myeik at 11:55am, and departed for Yangon at 1:06pm. However, ground staff lost contact with the flight at around 1:35pm where it was last pinpointed about 20 miles west of Dawei.
According to AFP, the plane was carrying 116 passengers.
Authorities are currently trying to locate the aircraft, and rescue services have been deployed.
Update: The commander-in-chief’s office has confirmed that there were 90 military personnel and family members, along with 14 crew members, onboard. Four rescue ships and two military aircrafts have been deployed to search for the missing plane.
Update: The office has updated the number of military personnel and family members onboard from 90 to 106, making it a total of 120 passengers onboard. The number of rescue vehicles have also been increased, with six ships and three aircrafts now searching for the missing plane.
Update: Debris from the plane has been found in the sea, a military official has confirmed to AFP.
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