Crashed Indonesian plane carries cash worth half million dollars

JAKARTA - A passenger plane that crashed Sunday in east Indonesia's Papua province was carrying 6.5 billion rupiah ($470,000) in cash, an official said Monday.

The money was government funds for distribution to poor families in Pegunungan Bintang in the province. It was being escorted by four post office workers.

Local officials said a search team has located the wreckage of the Trigana Air plane near the city of Oksibil in Papua Province and rescuers were racing to the crash site.

The plane with 54 people aboard went missing 33 minutes after takeoff from the provincial capital of Jayapura on Sunday.