Indonesia finds black boxes, wreckage, body parts in search for Sriwijaya Air plane that crashed into sea
- Indonesia’s transport minister confirmed the Boeing 737-500 with 62 aboard had crashed near Laki Island soon after taking off from the airport in Jakarta
- Military divers found parts of wreckage at a depth of 25 metres, while body parts and other debris has been found and emergency signals detected
“Hopefully, we can retrieve them soon,” said military chief Hadi Tjahjanto of the flight recorders, without giving an estimated time frame.
Pieces of wreckage were brought to Jakarta port by rescuers. One twisted piece of metal was painted in Sriwijaya Air’s blue and red colours. Indonesian authorities said they had also retrieved body parts and clothing.
Police asked families to provide information such as dental records and DNA samples to help identify bodies. Flight SJ182 had 12 crew and 50 passengers on board, including seven children and three babies.
President Joko Widodo, speaking at the palace in Bogor, expressed “deep condolences” over the disaster and urged the public to pray the missing people could be found.
“I am optimistic we will find [the plane] soon,” Henri Alfiandi, an assistant to the chief of staff of the Indonesian Air Force, told a news briefing.
Indonesian Transport Minister Budi Karya earlier told a news conference that the plane crashed near Laki Island, some 20km (12 miles) from the airport.
“We have prepared all the equipment and are ready at the spot where the debris was found yesterday,” Muhammad Yassin, director of marine police (Polair) told the TVOne channel from navy vessel KRI Gilimanuk.
Indonesia searches for missing Sriwijaya Air Boeing plane feared to have crashed into the sea off Jakarta
A diver involved in the search and rescue operation interviewed by Kompas TV said his team had an underwater metal detector and a pinger locator to deploy in an effort to pick up signals for the plane’s black box. Helicopters were also on standby at an airport near Jakarta to launch a search from the air.
The Indonesian meteorological agency has warned of a risk of heavy rain and strong winds that could hamper the search and rescue efforts.
“We are in contact with our airline customer and stand ready to support them during this difficult time,” Boeing said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with the crew, passengers, and their families.”
All those on board were Indonesian, Indonesia’s transport safety committee said.
Reliable tracking service Flightradar24 said the Boeing jet took off at 2.36pm local time and climbed to reach 10,900 feet within four minutes. It then began a steep descent and stopped sending data 21 seconds later.
A transport ministry spokeswoman said air traffic control at Soekarno-Hatta International Airport had asked the pilot why the plane was heading northwest instead of on its expected flight path just seconds before it disappeared.
There were no immediate clues as to what may have caused the sudden descent and safety experts stress most air accidents are caused by a cocktail of factors that can take months to establish.
Indonesian television channels showed pictures of suspected wreckage late on Saturday.
“We found some cables, a piece of jeans, and pieces of metal on the water,” Zulkifli, a security official, told CNNIndonesia.com.
Distraught relatives waited at Pontianak, around 740km (460 miles) from Jakarta.
Yaman Zai, a father of three children who were aboard the plane with their mother, said that he was at the airport in Pontianak waiting for them, when he heard the news.
“I will never meet her again,” he said, holding up a photo of his oldest daughter.
Indonesia’s KNKT safety agency was expected to launch an immediate investigation. The US National Safety Transportation Board will automatically be part of the probe, since the plane was designed and built in the United States.
Founded in 2003, Jakarta-based Sriwijaya Air group flies largely within Indonesia. The airline has a solid safety record until now, with no on-board casualties in four incidents recorded on the Aviation Safety Network database.
Boeing to pay US$2.5 billion over 737 MAX cover-up
The Boeing 737 is the world’s most-sold family of aircraft and has undergone several makeovers since it entered service in 1968.
The 737-500 is two generations of development before the most recent 737 MAX and are being phased out for newer fuel-saving models. Civil jets typically have an economic life of 25 years, meaning they become too expensive to keep flying beyond that compared to younger models, but they are built to last longer.
Even before the latest crash, more people had died in air cashes in Indonesia than in any other country over the past decade, according to Aviation Safety Network’s database.
In 2007, the European Union banned all Indonesian airlines following a series of crashes and reports of deteriorating oversight and maintenance since deregulation in the late 1990s. The restrictions were fully lifted in 2018.
Between 2007 and 2016, the US Federal Aviation Administration lowered its Indonesia safety evaluation to Category 2, meaning its regulatory system was inadequate.
Indonesian officials say they have worked hard to bring safety up to international standards.
