Indonesian security forces recovered the body of an American pilot on Friday, a day after armed separatists attacked and burned a small aircraft in the restive Papua region, a military commander confirmed.
Pilot Shot Dead After Landing
Nicholas F. Goselin, a pilot for Indonesian aviation company PT AMA, was shot dead on Thursday shortly after landing at the Ipdeheik airstrip in Balinggama village, Yahukimo regency, in the mountainous Papua Highlands province. Brig. Gen. Riyanto, deputy commander of the Habema Operations Command, stated that the evacuation involved 10 personnel and was carried out after troops secured the remote airstrip in a rapid operation.
Rebels Claim Responsibility
Rebels armed with guns and axes raised the Morning Star flag, a symbol of Papuan independence, as they claimed responsibility for the attack. A video distributed to media by the West Papua Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement, showed the group's involvement. The decades-old insurgency between Indigenous Papuans and Indonesian security forces has intensified over the past year, with dozens killed on all sides. Foreign pilots have been specifically targeted.
Details of the Incident
Contact with the airstrip was lost shortly after Goselin reported the plane landing. The aircraft carried one pilot and seven passengers, according to Indonesia’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation. The US Embassy had no immediate comment.
Rebel spokesman Sebby Sambom said the aircraft violated a ban on civilian flights in areas the separatist group considers its operational zones. He alleged that civilian aircraft have been used to transport Indonesian military personnel and logistics into Papua’s remote interior, and that the pilot was killed because the aircraft continued operating despite warnings. These claims could not be independently verified.
Military Denies Troop Transport
The Indonesian military denied that the plane was used to carry troops, stating that the seven passengers were indigenous Papuan civilians, including three women, who were unharmed. Sambom called on Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto to open international negotiations to resolve the decades-long conflict in Papua, which separatists say has resulted in civilian deaths and mass displacement.
“The shooting of the American pilot is the result of the failure of the Indonesian, US and Dutch governments, as well as the United Nations, to address the root causes of the conflict in Papua, which has persisted for 64 years,” Sambom said in a statement. He urged the United Nations to facilitate talks involving the Indonesian government, the TPNPB, and Papuan representatives, and warned that the group would target other civilian aircraft it believes are assisting military operations.
Previous Attacks on Foreign Pilots
In February 2023, Egianus Kogoya, a regional commander in the Free Papua Movement, abducted New Zealand pilot Philip Mark Mehrtens, who worked for Susi Air. He was freed in September 2024. In August 2024, TPNPB gunmen stormed a helicopter and killed its New Zealand pilot, Glen Malcolm Conning, who worked for PT Intan Angkasa Air Service. He was shot shortly after landing in a remote village in Mimika district, carrying several indigenous Papuans who were freed.
Papua, a former Dutch colony, was incorporated into Indonesia in 1969 under a United Nations-sponsored ballot widely seen as a sham, triggering the protracted conflict.
