AirAsia Flight 8501: Plane’s Fuselage Spotted in Java Sea
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Images posted on Facebook by Ng Eng Hen, Singapore’s defense minister, show the fuselage of AirAsia Flight 8501 in the Java Sea, Jan. 14, 2015. Ministry of Defence Singapore(SINGAPORE) — The fuselage of downed AirAsia Flight 8501 has been spotted in the Java Sea, Singapore’s defense minister, Ng Eng Hen, confirmed Wednesday, as underwater images have emerged showing the main plane wreckage.
Images released by the defense minister showed sections of the fuselage with lettering on the side of the plane visible in the black-and-white images.
“I hope that with the fuselage located, some form of closure can come to the families of the victims to ease their grief,” he said in a statement posted to Facebook.
AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes confirmed that the fuselage has been found.
It is so so sad though seeing our aircraft. I’m gutted and devastated. But hopefully we can find the rest of … http://t.co/6GMWZL6Fkz
— Tony Fernandes (@tonyfernandes) January 14, 2015
Authorities with Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency will now begin the recovery operations.
The plane’s black boxes have been recovered in recent days, and authorities are optimistic that the cockpit voice and flight data recorders will help experts better understand what caused the plane to crash.
The crash on Dec. 28 killed all 162 people on board.
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