INDONESIA. Jakarta: Rescuers pulled out body parts, pieces of clothing, and scraps of metal from the Java Sea, a day after the ill-fated flight Boeing 737-500 crashed after taking off from Indonesia. There were 62 people on board including seven children and three babies.
Officials were hopeful they were honing in on the wreckage of Sriwijaya Air Flight 182 after sonar equipment detected a signal from the aircraft. The connection with the flight was established after 12 hours.
According to the reports, Flight SJ182 was delayed for an hour before it took off at 2:36 pm. After around four minutes, the flight disappeared from the radar. The pilot had also contacted air traffic control to ascend to an altitude of 29,000 feet (8,839 meters).
On social media, people began circulating the flight manifesto with photos and videos of those who were listed as passengers.
Meanwhile, an investigator from Indonesia’s National Transport Safety Committee (KNKT) has claimed that the Sriwijaya Air jet possibly broke apart after hitting the water.
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Indonesia’s Transporation Minister Budi Karya Sumadi said that the officials have launched massive search efforts after identifying the possible location of the crash.
Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto said, “The Rigel navy ship equipped with a remote-operated vehicle had detected a signal from the aircraft, which fit the coordinates from the last contact made by the pilots before the plane went missing”.
Tjahjanto also added that they had deployed professional divers from the Navy’s elite unit to find the victims.
Several fishermen residing around that area claimed that they had heard an explosion at around 2:30 pm on Saturday.
Meanwhile, the authorities have established two crisis centers, one at the airport and one at the port for the victims’ families.
