Tail of the crashed AirAsia plane found in the Java Sea, boosting hopes of recovering flight data
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Version 0 of 1. On Wednesday, search teams contending with swift currents and low visibility found the tail of AirAsia Flight 8501, the jet that crashed into the Java Sea in late December. The discovery brings investigators a giant leap closer to recovering the plane’s voice recorders and data boxes — those important pieces of evidence should be in the tail of the aircraft. Searchers photographed the debris with an underwater, remote-operated vehicle. The AirAsia logo located on the tail of the aircraft is partially visible, National Search and Rescue chief Henry Bambang Soelistyo told reporters. Search teams continued to look for the black box on Thursday, amid the wreckage now confirmed to be that of the tail. But their efforts were hindered by poor conditions. “due to swift underwater currents and limited visibility, the divers were only able to find more debris which is presumed to be the interior part of the aircraft and baggage compartment,” AirAsia said in a statement. Investigators also recovered one more body from the wreckage. We need to find all parts soon so we can find all out guests to ease the pain of our families. That still is our priority — Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) January 7, 2015 We need to find all parts soon so we can find all out guests to ease the pain of our families. That still is our priority — Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) January 7, 2015 Indonesian Search and Rescue Agency chief Henry Bambang Soelistyo told the media that efforts to locate the black box would resume Friday. Investigators hope to learn from that data why the jet plunged into the ocean on Dec. 28, with 162 people on board. The positioning of the tail is further complicating recovery, the BBC notes. officials believe it sits partially buried, upside down at the bottom of the sea, about 98 feet under water. The black box emits a signal to aid search and rescue teams for about three weeks, or the length of its power supply. But search teams have been unable to take boats out to the crash site long enough to sweep for that signal. Bad weather and choppy seas have slowed the search and recovery efforts for the bodies of the crash’s victims. About 40 crash victims have been discovered so far. The Associated Press notes that officials hope the majority of the crash’s other victims will be found inside the wreckage of the fuselage. Sunu Widyatmoko, president of AirAsia Indonesia, announced to reporters this week that the victims’ families will each receive a sum of about $100,000 Right now, officials believe that bad weather also contributed to the Airbus 320-200′s crash. The pilot’s last radio message was a request to change altitude, with the implication that the request was to avoid bad weather. AirAsia Flight 8501 crashed during a short flight between Surabaya and Singapore. Just before disappearing from radar, the pilot was denied permission to alter the plane’s altitude. There was no distress signal. |