Komodo dive master still missing as sonar and drone search is called off
Police in East Nusa Tenggara have called off the search for a dive master lost after the Feronia sank in Komodo National Park, with neither the victim nor the wreck found.
Indonesian police have stopped the search for a dive master missing since the Feronia sank in Komodo National Park. Despite sonar, an underwater robotic drone and a joint operation involving 76 personnel, neither the victim nor the main wreckage has been found.
A ten-day search with specialist equipment
By the tenth day of the search, the East Nusa Tenggara Water Police said, the victim had still not been found "even though advanced equipment has been deployed." The water police deployed a KPC 2007 fast-track hunting boat, a RIB 02 and single-beam sonar to support the joint search and rescue (SAR) team.
The SAR team then relied on underwater drone footage and sonar searches. Police said the evaluation of that material produced "no evidence of the victim." The missing dive master was 23 years old and lived in the Batu Cermin Airport Complex in Labuan Bajo.
76 personnel from the military, the police, the Basarnas search agency, the Sea and Coast Guard Unit, the fisheries ministry, the port operator Pelindo and local residents took part in the operation.
Search and rescue work at sea depends on combining several tools, because no single method covers the seabed well enough on its own. Sonar can flag objects on the bottom, while camera footage from a drone allows officers to check what the sonar has picked up. When both fail to produce a result, the decision to end the search rests on whether further effort is likely to change the outcome.
Where the search focused and who took part
The search concentrated on the waters around the initial sinking site. Police named Tatawa Besar, Batu Bolong, Mawan, Batu Tiga and Sebayur as the areas covered. The SAR team also used a remotely operated vehicle belonging to PT Farmindo and side-scan sonar from the Navy's Koarmada II in Surabaya.
Several vessels supported the operation. These included the KM Hiu Macan 03, a rigid inflatable boat from the Labuan Bajo Naval Base, and the warship KRI Pulau Fani-731. The combination shows how many agencies were needed for a search in open water, and how much coordination such an effort requires between military, police, civilian rescue and port authorities.
Why currents made the search so hard
Police described dynamic underwater currents as one of the biggest challenges facing the operation. Currents can move a body or debris well away from where it went down, which makes a search area drawn from the sinking site less certain over time. That uncertainty is one reason why sonar and drone results, even when carefully reviewed, can fail to locate a person.
After the evaluations, Basarnas Maumere officially called off the operation. Neither the victim nor the main Feronia wreckage had been located. The same region has recently seen another long search: a 15-day operation for a missing Spaniard in Labuan Bajo, which Indonesia also ended without a result.
What this means for investors
HubLombok covers property and investment on Lombok, and this story sits outside that scope. It concerns a diving incident in a different province, and it carries no property prices, yields or market data, so we have not added any. Its relevance for investors is general rather than local.
Tourism-linked businesses in Indonesia carry operational and safety risks that a polished brochure rarely shows. Anyone assessing a tourism asset, whether a villa, a boat operation or a dive business, should ask how the operator handles incidents, what insurance covers marine activity, and how it works with local police and rescue services when something goes wrong. Those questions are part of due diligence, not a sign of pessimism.
Police patrols in Komodo National Park waters continue through the Labuan Bajo Marine Unit. Officers have asked tourist and fishing vessels to stay vigilant and to report any sign of victims or wreckage. For a region that depends on visitors who go to sea, that vigilance is worth watching in the months ahead.
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Was the missing Komodo dive master found?
No. After ten days of searching with sonar, an underwater robotic drone and 76 personnel, the joint search and rescue team found neither the victim nor the main Feronia wreckage. Basarnas Maumere then officially called off the operation, and police patrols in the park's waters continue.
What should people do if they see signs of wreckage in Komodo National Park?
Police ask tourist and fishing vessel crews to stay vigilant and report any signs of victims or wreckage. Anyone with information should call the water police or the West Manggarai Police SPKT centre on 101, giving the location and what they saw.
Why was the search for the dive master so difficult?
Police said dynamic underwater currents were among the biggest challenges. The search focused on waters around the initial sinking site, including Tatawa Besar, Batu Bolong, Mawan, Batu Tiga and Sebayur, and combined sonar, drone footage and side-scan sonar from several agencies.
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