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| AirAsia crash: international team arrives to bolster search for black boxes | AirAsia crash: international team arrives to bolster search for black boxes |
| (35 minutes later) | |
| An international team armed with acoustic equipment arrived at the suspected crash site of the sunken AirAsia jet off Borneo on Friday, bolstering the search for the plane’s black box flight recorders. | An international team armed with acoustic equipment arrived at the suspected crash site of the sunken AirAsia jet off Borneo on Friday, bolstering the search for the plane’s black box flight recorders. |
| Bad weather has hampered the search, preventing divers from looking for the wreck of the Airbus A320-200, which was carrying 162 people when it crashed on Sunday en route from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore. | Bad weather has hampered the search, preventing divers from looking for the wreck of the Airbus A320-200, which was carrying 162 people when it crashed on Sunday en route from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore. |
| Ten bodies have been recovered so far. | Ten bodies have been recovered so far. |
| Rear Marshal Henry Bambang Soelistyo, head of Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency, said the search would be stepped up as long as the weather allowed. | Rear Marshal Henry Bambang Soelistyo, head of Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency, said the search would be stepped up as long as the weather allowed. |
| “We will focus on underwater detection,” said Soelistyo, adding that ships from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the US had been on the scene from before dawn Friday to try to pinpoint the wreckage and the all-important black boxes the flight data and cockpit voice recorders. | “We will focus on underwater detection,” said Soelistyo, adding that ships from Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore and the US had been on the scene from before dawn Friday to try to pinpoint the wreckage and the all-important black boxes the flight data and cockpit voice recorders. |
| Nine planes, many with metal detectors, were also scouring a 13,500 square kilometre (8,380 square mile) area off Pangkalan Bun, the closest town on Borneo island to the search area. Two Japanese ships with three helicopters are on their way to the area, Soelistyo said. | Nine planes, many with metal detectors, were also scouring a 13,500 square kilometre (8,380 square mile) area off Pangkalan Bun, the closest town on Borneo island to the search area. Two Japanese ships with three helicopters are on their way to the area, Soelistyo said. |
| France’s BEA crash investigation agency, which attends the crashes of all Airbus planes, was also on the scene with two hydrophones, or underwater acoustic detection devices. | |
| But Soelistyo said bad weather, which has hindered the search for the last several days, was set to continue with forecasts of rain, strong winds and waves up to 4m high. The strong sea currents have kept debris moving. | But Soelistyo said bad weather, which has hindered the search for the last several days, was set to continue with forecasts of rain, strong winds and waves up to 4m high. The strong sea currents have kept debris moving. |
| The Indonesian-led search for the wreck of Flight QZ8501 is centred in the northern Java Sea, close to the Karimata Strait, where search teams have recovered the bodies and pieces of the plane. Previous reports of a sonar image showing the fuselage in the water have not been confirmed, officials said. | The Indonesian-led search for the wreck of Flight QZ8501 is centred in the northern Java Sea, close to the Karimata Strait, where search teams have recovered the bodies and pieces of the plane. Previous reports of a sonar image showing the fuselage in the water have not been confirmed, officials said. |
| Officials earlier said it may take up to a week to find the black boxes, which investigators hope will reveal the sequence of events in the cockpit and in the heavily computerised jet’s systems. The BEA team attends the crashes of all Airbus planes. | Officials earlier said it may take up to a week to find the black boxes, which investigators hope will reveal the sequence of events in the cockpit and in the heavily computerised jet’s systems. The BEA team attends the crashes of all Airbus planes. |
| Even in bad weather, the search for the AirAsia jet is unlikely to be as technologically challenging as the two-year search for an Air France jet that crashed into deep Atlantic waters in 2009 or the so far fruitless search for Malaysian Flight 370 which disappeared last year. | Even in bad weather, the search for the AirAsia jet is unlikely to be as technologically challenging as the two-year search for an Air France jet that crashed into deep Atlantic waters in 2009 or the so far fruitless search for Malaysian Flight 370 which disappeared last year. |
| Given Flight QZ8501 crashed in shallow seas, experts say finding the boxes should not be difficult if the beacons, with a range of 2,000 to 3,000 metres (6,560 to 9,800 ft), are working. | Given Flight QZ8501 crashed in shallow seas, experts say finding the boxes should not be difficult if the beacons, with a range of 2,000 to 3,000 metres (6,560 to 9,800 ft), are working. |
| Tatang Kurniadim, the head of Indonesia’s National Committee for Transportation Safety, said late Thursday that rescuers would use five ping locators - two from Indonesia, two from Singapore and one from Britain - once bad weather had eased and the waters had calmed as expected within five days. | Tatang Kurniadim, the head of Indonesia’s National Committee for Transportation Safety, said late Thursday that rescuers would use five ping locators - two from Indonesia, two from Singapore and one from Britain - once bad weather had eased and the waters had calmed as expected within five days. |
| Investigators are working on a theory that the plane stalled as it climbed steeply to avoid a storm about 40 minutes into the flight. | Investigators are working on a theory that the plane stalled as it climbed steeply to avoid a storm about 40 minutes into the flight. |
| The bodies recovered so far are being taken in numbered coffins to Surabaya, where relatives of the victims have gathered, for identification. Authorities have been collecting DNA from relatives to help identify the bodies. One body, that of Hayati Lutfiah Hamid, has been identified and her remains were handed over to family members during a brief ceremony at a police hospital in Surabaya. | The bodies recovered so far are being taken in numbered coffins to Surabaya, where relatives of the victims have gathered, for identification. Authorities have been collecting DNA from relatives to help identify the bodies. One body, that of Hayati Lutfiah Hamid, has been identified and her remains were handed over to family members during a brief ceremony at a police hospital in Surabaya. |
| Most of those on board were Indonesians. No survivors have been found. | Most of those on board were Indonesians. No survivors have been found. |