Fears high missing jet at bottom of sea

JAKARTA, Monday
Dozens of planes and ships searching Indonesian waters for a missing AirAsia plane focused today on a patch of oil for possible clues, as a senior official warned the aircraft was likely at the bottom of the sea.

Australia, Singapore and Malaysia joined the Indonesia-led search as anguished relatives awaited news of their loved ones more than a day after Flight QZ8501 disappeared over the Java Sea with 162 people on board.

“Papa come home, I still need Papa,” Angela, the daughter of the Indonesian pilot Irianto, begged in an emotional appeal on local social media.

The Airbus A320-200 lost contact en route from Surabaya in Indonesia’s east Java to Singapore on Sunday after the crew requested a change of flight plan due to stormy weather, in the third crisis for a Malaysian carrier this year.

Indonesian Air Force spokesman Hadi Tjahjanto told AFP the search was now concentrated on an oil patch spotted off Belitung island, across from Kalimantan on Borneo island.

“We are making sure whether it was avtur (aviation fuel) from the AirAsia plane or from a vessel because that location is a shipping line,” he said.

As the second day’s search ended at dusk, National Search and Rescue Agency chief Bambang Soelistyo said an Indonesian corvette was on its way to collect an oil sample, with an announcement expected Tuesday.

Soelistyo earlier it was likely the plane was at the “bottom of the sea”.

The hypothesis is “based on the coordinates given to us and evaluation that the estimated crash position is in the sea”, he told journalists.

Ships and aircraft were searching an area where the sea is 40-50 metres deep, he said, adding that Indonesia was coordinating with other countries to borrow any equipment needed to scour the seabed.

Distraught relatives in Surabaya were desperately hoping for news of loved ones as the international search expanded. Intan, 28, said Indonesia needed overseas help to find the plane which was carrying her brother and his family and friends.

“My hope is Indonesia seeks as much help as possible from other countries. Don’t claim ‘We have sophisticated technology’, just ask other countries because they are better equipped,” she told AFP.

“My prayer is I really, really hope that there will be news about the people on board. Whatever it is, what is important is we know where they are now,” she said.

While the international operation has drawn comparisons with the ongoing search for Malaysia Airlines MH370, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbot said it did not appear to be a great mystery.

“It doesn’t appear that there’s any particular mystery here,” Mr Abbott told Sydney radio station 2GB. “It’s an aircraft that was flying a regular route on a regular schedule, it struck what appears to have been horrific weather.