Former Alaska bush pilot shot, killed after landing in Papua; aircraft burned

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - An American pilot with years of flying experience in Alaska was shot and killed in Indonesia on Thursday, according to the Indonesian military and his employer.

Nicholas F. Goselin was a pilot for Indonesian aviation company PT AMA. Military officials said he was shot in Indonesia’s Highland Papua province by armed separatists shortly after landing in Balinggama village in Yahukimo regency.

The West Papua Liberation Army, or TPNPB, claimed responsibility for the shooting and said its fighters set fire to the PT AMA aircraft, according to the Associated Press. Indonesian aviation officials said contact with the plane was lost after the pilot reported landing. The Indonesian military denied the group’s claim that the aircraft had been used to transport troops and said seven Indigenous Papuan passengers were unharmed.

TPNPB spokesman Sebby Sambom told the Associated Press the group considered the flight a violation of its ban on civilian aircraft in areas it claims as operational territory. Sambom alleged such flights have been used to transport Indonesian military personnel and supplies into remote Papua, and said the pilot was killed because the aircraft continued operating despite the warning. AP reported that the claims were not independently verified. --- More...

WATCH: Indonesian troops recovered the body of American pilot Nicholas F. Goselin after he was shot dead by rebels in Papua. pic.twitter.com/o5kXuY4ydY

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