Nine Australians on missing PNG plane

Nine Australians on their way to walk the iconic Kokoda Track are on board a plane
that has gone missing in Papua New Guinea.
They were among 13 people on Airlines of Papua New Guinea flight CG4684 that was
travelling from Port Moresby to Kokoda on Tuesday but failed to arrive at its
destination.
There are grave fears for all on board.
Eight Australians were part of a No Roads Expedition tour group and another was an
Australian tour guide.
Up to 6,000 Australians tackle the Kokoda challenge each year, retracing the steps
of World War II diggers and paying homage to the 600 diggers who died repelling
invading Japanese forces.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) confirmed that 13 people were on
board the plane that failed to arrive at Kokoda airstrip on Tuesday morning.
Two crew members were also on the aircraft.
"Nine of the passengers are known to be Australians," a DFAT spokeswoman said.
"Consular staff are contacting families of the Australian passengers to offer
consular assistance."
Authorities were searching the Owen Stanley Ranges north of Port Moresby on Tuesday
evening but called it off after it got dark.
Joseph Kintau, the director of PNG's Civil Aviation Authority, said the search would
resume on Wednesday morning.
"First light, we will be out there looking again," he said.
Mr Kintau said the Australian government was providing help, including a plane from
Cairns with infra-red detection equipment.
The two crew members aboard the missing plane are believed to be PNG pilots Jenny
Moala and Royden Soauka.
An aviation industry insider told AAP the missing plane had aborted its first
landing attempt on Tuesday morning.
"We've heard she pulled out of the first attempt and a plane behind her landed, then
she has done a loop and gone missing," they said.
Foreign Minister Stephen Smith has expressed grave concerns for the nine Australians
on board a plane that has gone missing in Papua New Guinea.
Mr Smith said the nine Australians on board the plane were from Queensland and
Victoria and that their families had been contacted by officials from the Department
of Foreign Affairs and Trade.
"This of course is an agonising time for these families," he said.
"I am advised that weather conditions are making that search very difficult," he said.
"That search includes checks of other airfields in the vicinity."
Walking the Kokoda Track is a popular rite of passage for many Australians,
including Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who walked it with political rival Joe Hockey
in recent years.
But it can be a dangerous adventure.
Four Australian trekkers have perished on the track since 2001.
Two of them - 36-year-old Samantha Killen from Victoria and a NSW man - died in the
week before Anzac Day.
Another danger is lax aviation standards in PNG.
There are questions surrounding the investigation of 19 air crashes since 2000 which
have killed 16 people, including three Australians and three New Zealanders.
The Australian High Commission in Port Moresby has established a consular crisis
centre and was liaising with authorities.
People concerned about the welfare of family or friends are advised to contact
DFAT's consular emergency centre on 02 6261 3305.