Decades-long separatist unrest in Indonesia’s resource-rich Papua region has taken a new violent turn, with the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) claiming responsibility for the fatal shooting of an American pilot and the subsequent burning of his aircraft in Highland Papua province.
According to TPNPB spokesman Sebby Sambom, the attack unfolded shortly after pilot Nicholas F. Gosselin landed the plane in Yahukimo region on Thursday. Sambom said the strike was carried out in fulfillment of the group’s pre-established ban on all civilian flights in the disputed area, a restriction imposed over allegations that civilian pilots have been actively ferrying Indonesian troops and military logistics to support government counterinsurgency operations.
“We immediately fired upon and burned the plane because it had violated the TPNPB ultimatum,” Sambom stated in a formal declaration from the group. He added that the killing was intended to send a clear message to all parties operating in the region: “We are prepared to fire upon any civilian aircraft across the Land of Papua that assists Indonesian military forces in transporting troops or military logistics.”
Sambom also laid out terms for the recovery of Gosselin’s body, requiring Indonesian authorities to enter the area without accompanying military or police personnel. In line with the group’s long-standing position, he called on the Indonesian government to enter into direct negotiations to resolve the decades-long sovereignty conflict that has defined the region since 1969, when Papua was formally incorporated into Indonesia. Separatist estimates claim the ongoing conflict has resulted in thousands of civilian deaths and widespread mass displacement of indigenous Papuan communities.
Indonesian official accounts have so far left key details of the incident unconfirmed. Authorities have verified that Gosselin’s plane was found burned at the Yahukimo airport, but have not independently confirmed Gosselin’s death nor the status of the seven passengers who were on board the aircraft at the time of the incident.
Indonesia’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation noted that no security threats were reported as the flight approached for landing, but all communication with the plane was lost immediately after it touched down. “Initial reports, from the director of the airport where the flight took off, state that pilot has died,” the agency’s official statement read. “The suspected cause of the incident is still awaiting further confirmation from the relevant authorities.”
Yusuf Sutejo, a spokesperson for Indonesia’s combined police-military counterinsurgency operation in the region, also said authorities could not yet confirm whether the aircraft was targeted in a rebel attack, nor provide any update on the condition of those on board. The U.S. Embassy in Jakarta and the U.S. State Department have been contacted for comment on the incident, but have not yet released an official statement as of press time.
This latest attack aligns with a pattern of targeting of foreign civilian pilots by the TPNPB in recent years. In 2024, a New Zealand pilot held hostage by the group for 19 months was released following extended negotiations between Indonesian and New Zealand officials. Just one month before that release, TPNPB gunmen killed another New Zealand helicopter pilot, Glen Malcolm Conning, who was shot dead shortly after landing in a remote Papuan village.