A plane carrying 47 people from PT Exxon Mobil was fired upon in Indonesia's Aceh province on Monday forcing the pilot to abandon the landing, officials and news reports said.
The shots missed their target as the Pelita Air Service plane was about to land, a meteorology official at Lhokseumawe's Malikussaleh airport in North Aceh told AFP.
The pilot re-routed the flight back to Polonia airport in Medan, the capital of neighboring North Sumatra province, the official added. No one was hurt and the identity of the attackers remains a mystery.
Pelita Air Service in Medan confirmed the incident but declined to provide further details.
The Detik.com news portal quoted staff at Polonia airport as saying the plane was carrying 47 employees from PT Exxon Mobil who work the Arun gas field in North Aceh.
The incident occured a day before a visit by President Abdurrahman Wahid to the capital Banda Aceh, where he is scheduled to inaugurate Islamic Sharia law and hand over humanitarian aid.
The visit is seen as part of government efforts to pacify a clamor for independence in the devoutly Muslim province.
Free Aceh Movement (GAM) guerrillas have fought for an independent Aceh state for more than 20 years.
More than 800 people died this year in clashes between GAM and government troops, despite a shaky truce which took force in June.
Pressure for a vote on self-rule has intensified since East Timor's breakaway from Indonesia last year after a UN-conducted ballot on self determination.
Jakarta has ruled out independence but pledged broad autonomy for the resource-rich province -- JAKARTA (AFP)
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