Update | Over 40 bodies recovered at sea as debris pulled from possible AirAsia crash site

More than 40 bodies have been recovered from the sea near to where AirAsia flight QZ8501 went missing, according to the Indonesian navy, which is helping lead the search.

An Indonesian warship had recovered 40 “and the number is growing”, navy spokesman Manahan Simorangkir said.

Officials coming off a search flight this afternoon said they had spotted several bodies, which were taken to a navy ship, while a spotter plane crew said they had seen a "shadow" on the seabed believed to be the missing plane.

The reported "shadow" marks where the search will be concentrated, National Search and Rescue Agency chief Bambang  Soelistyo said, referring to the area about 160 kilometres southwest of the town of Pangkalan Bun in Central Kalimantan on Borneo island. The town has the nearest airstrip to the search zone.

Debris floating on the Java Sea's surface have also been photographed. A navy spokesman said a plane door and oxygen tanks had been recovered and taken away by helicopter for tests.

Relatives of the 162 people missing on the plane hugged each other and burst into tears in Surabaya, where the plane departed from on Sunday, as they watched footage of at least one body on a television feed of Soelistyo’s press conference in Jakarta.

The corpses did not have life jackets on, National Search and Rescue Director SB Supriyadi told reporters in the nearest town, Pangkalan Bun.