There was no immediate accurate detail as to how many of the victims were in the plane or on the ground.
The plane was said to be on its way from an air force base in Medan, and was headed to Natuna islands.
It crashed a few minutes after takeoff.
Rescue team working to save what is left of the mishap
Rescue operations as the crowd watches on
Pictures gathered on social media showed large crowds and emergency services gathered around the flaming wreckage.
Visible also was the fuselage of the aircraft among thick clouds of black smoke.
Rescue team removing dead bodies from the wreck
Several buildings within the vicinity were left in ruins, fears are that more deaths will be recorded.
There have been former accidents involving the Indonesian air force.
In April, an F-16 fighter jet caught fire as it was about to take off from an airbase in Jakarta, prompting the pilot to jump to safety as flames and thick smoke engulfed the plane.
The pilot was reported to have escaped with minor injuries from the jet which had been due to provide security at a summit of Asian and African leaders in Indonesia.
This happened a month after two air force planes from an Indonesian aerobatics team crashed during a practice session ahead of an air show on Malaysia’s Langkawi island.
Reports say that all four pilots ejected successfully and survived.
Statistics have shown that the civil aviation safety record in Indonesia is very poor.
It must be recalled that an Indonesian AirAsia plane crashed in December enroute from Indonesia’s Surabaya to Singapore, killing all 162 people on board.
