A helicopter pilot from New Zealand has been killed by separatist fighters in the remote region of Papua, Indonesia, according to police reports. The attack took place when the helicopter landed on Monday in the village of Alama, located in the Mimika district of Central Papua province.
Faizal Ramadhani, the head of the joint security force in Papua, confirmed that armed groups attacked the helicopter as soon as it touched down. However, the four indigenous Papuan passengers on board were released after the incident. The deceased pilot, Glen Malcolm Conning, 50 years old, hailed from Motueka on New Zealand’s South Island and was an experienced aviator who had flown missions earlier this year to combat bushfires near Christchurch.
A spokesperson for New Zealand’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed they were aware of the incident but declined to comment further as they sought information from Indonesian authorities. “[Glen] was well-loved in Motueka and was a wonderful family man,” said his close friend Kerry Gatenby to the New Zealand Herald.
The killing comes approximately 18 months after another New Zealand pilot, Phillip Mehrtens, was kidnapped by separatists. He remains in captivity after being taken hostage in February 2023 when his small commercial aircraft was attacked by the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPN-PB).
Ramadhani added that the TPN-PB was also responsible for the attack on Monday. This group is the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), which was classified as a “terrorist” organization by the Indonesian government in 2021. A spokesperson for TPN-PB, Sebby Samborn, stated that he had not received reports regarding the killing but suggested that it could be the pilot’s fault for landing in their “forbidden territory.”
Papua is a resource-rich region that houses one of the world’s largest gold and copper mines; however, the struggle for independence has persisted for decades. Papua, whose population is ethnically and culturally distinct from Indonesia, was incorporated into Indonesia in 1969 following a controversial referendum in which only around 1,000 Papuans participated.