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AirAsia Flight QZ8501: Indonesian divers find black box

Found under water ... part of the AirAsia wreckage is seen in the waters of the Java Sea,
Found under water ... part of the AirAsia wreckage is seen in the waters of the Java Sea, Indonesia. Picture: AP Photo/BASARNAS Source: AP
AFP  AFP

INDONESIAN divers have found the crucial black box flight recorders of the AirAsia plane that crashed in the Java Sea a fortnight ago with 162 people aboard, the transport ministry said.

But they failed to retrieve it immediately from the seabed because it was stuck under debris from the main body of the plane, the ministry added.

“The navy divers in Jadayat state boat have succeeded in finding a very important instrument, the black box of AirAsia QZ8501,” said Tonny Budiono, a senior ministry official.

The recorders were at a depth of 30-32 metres (99-106 feet), he said in a statement.

Divers will on Monday try to shift the position of the wreckage to access the black box.

“However, if this effort fails, then the team will lift part of the main body using the same balloon technique used earlier to lift the tail,” Budiono added.

Wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501 is lifted onto the Crest Onyx.
Wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501 is lifted onto the Crest Onyx. Source: AFP
Parts of AirAsia Flight 8501 is seen on the deck of rescue ship Crest Onyx at Kumai port
Parts of AirAsia Flight 8501 is seen on the deck of rescue ship Crest Onyx at Kumai port in Pangkalan Bun, Sunday, Jan. 11, 2015. Picture: Achmad Ibrahim Source: AP
Crew members of Crest Onyx ship prepare to unload parts of AirAsia Flight 8501. Picture:
Crew members of Crest Onyx ship prepare to unload parts of AirAsia Flight 8501. Picture: Achmad Ibrahim Source: AP
After a frustrating two-week search often hampered by bad weather, officials earlier Sunday raised hopes by reporting that strong ping signals had been detected by three vessels involved in the search.

Those signals were coming from the seabed less than one kilometre (0.6 miles) from where the tail of the plane was found, Malaysian Navy chief Abdul Aziz Jaafar said in a post on Twitter. Malaysia’s Navy is helping in the search.

The Indonesian meteorological agency has said stormy weather likely caused the Airbus A320-200 to crash as it flew from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore on December 28.

But a definitive answer is impossible without the black box, which should contain the pilots’ final words as well as various flight data.

An aerial photo shows the tail section of the AirAsia flight QZ8501 on the deck of the Cr
An aerial photo shows the tail section of the AirAsia flight QZ8501 on the deck of the Crest Onyx. Picture: Zulkarnain Source: AFP
Picture: Zulkarnain
Picture: Zulkarnain Source: AFP
Members of National Search And Rescue Agency look at the airplane parts found floating in
Members of National Search And Rescue Agency look at the airplane parts found floating in the water near the site where AirAsia Flight 8501 disappeared. Picture: Achmad Ibrahim Source: AP
THE VICTIMS: 48 BODIES FOUND

S.B. Supriyadi, a director with the National Search and Rescue Agency, told reporters earlier in the day that an object believed to be the plane’s main body had also been detected near the source of the pings.

The search, which has involved US, Chinese and other international naval ships, has recovered 48 bodies so far.

Supriyadi said many bodies were believed trapped in the cabin, so reaching that part of the wreckage was also a top priority.

The tail of the plane, with its red AirAsia logo, was lifted out of the water on Saturday using giant balloons and a crane.

It was brought by tugboat on Sunday to a port near the search headquarters, at Pangkalan Bun town on Borneo island.

All but seven of those on board the flight were Indonesian.

An Indonesian diver and an official examine the wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501.
An Indonesian diver and an official examine the wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501. Source: AFP
The tail of AirAsia QZ8501 is lifted onto the deck of the Indonesian Search and Rescue (B
The tail of AirAsia QZ8501 is lifted onto the deck of the Indonesian Search and Rescue (BASARNAS) ship Crest Onyx after it was recovered at sea on January 10, 2015. Picture: Prasetyo Utomo Source: AFP
Relief: The tail of the AirAsia QZ8501 passenger plane is seen on the deck of the Indones
Relief: The tail of the AirAsia QZ8501 passenger plane is seen on the deck of the Indonesian Search and Rescue (BASARNAS) ship Crest Onyx. Picture: Prasetyo Utomo Source: AFP
An Indonesian officer examines the wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501 on the Crest Onyx.
An Indonesian officer examines the wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501 on the Crest Onyx. Source: AFP
The bodies of a South Korean couple were identified on Sunday, but their 11-month-old baby remains unaccounted for, Indonesian authorities said.

The other foreigners were one Singaporean, one Malaysian, one Briton and a Frenchman -- co-pilot Remi Plesel. Their bodies have not been recovered.

While the cause of the crash is unknown, the disaster has once again placed Indonesia’s chaotic aviation industry under scrutiny.

Indonesian officials have alleged Indonesia AirAsia did not have a licence to fly the route on the day of the crash, although the airline rejects the claim.

Members of the Indonesian search and rescue team pull wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501
Members of the Indonesian search and rescue team pull wreckage from AirAsia flight QZ8501 from the Java Sea. Source: AFP
A section (R) of the AirAsia flight QZ8501 is lifted onto the Crest Onyx. Picture: Adek B
A section (R) of the AirAsia flight QZ8501 is lifted onto the Crest Onyx. Picture: Adek Berry Source: AFP
Picture: Prasetyo Utomu
Picture: Prasetyo Utomu Source: AFP
Indonesia’s transport ministry quickly banned AirAsia from flying the Surabaya-Singapore route.

On Friday it suspended dozens more routes operated by five other domestic airlines for similar licence violations.

But they failed to retrieve it because it was stuck under debris from the main body of the plane, it added.

“The navy divers in Jadayat state boat have succeeded in finding a very important instrument, the black box of AirAsia QZ8501,” said Tonny Budiono, a senior ministry official on Sunday.