QZ8501 LIVE UPDATES DAY 2: Search for missing Air Asia plane resumes
UPDATE (10.58pm) Next-of-kin in Surabaya requesting 'live streaming' of search and locate operations
A family member leaving the crisis centre at Juanda International Airport in Surabaya. PHOTO: AFP
Detik.com is reporting that families of the passengers on board missing AirAsia flight QZ8501 are requesting a live stream of information from the search operations.
The transport ministry said they will be coordinating with Indonesian telco Telkom, but have not made a decision regarding live streaming.
Mr Pramintohadi from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation also said officials hope the search operation to be completed by the third day (Tuesday, Dec 30).
UPDATE (9.45PM): Search operation for missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501 to expand to land on Tuesday.
Malaysia's The Star Online reported Mr F. H. Bambang Soelistyo as saying: "Search operations tomorrow will expand to land, to, among others, the western part of west Kalimantan province."
Read more here.
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UPDATE: (9.05PM): Indonesia authorities have turned down an offer from shamans to assist in the search for the missing aircraft, Tempo.co reported.
The director of communications of National Search and Rescue Agency BASARNAS, Mr Sutono, said it could not accept the offer as "it was not our standard".
Read more here.
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UPDATE (8.35PM): AirAsia has arranged for 11 next-of-kin of passengers who were on board flight QZ8501 to fly from Singapore to Indonesia, the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore and the Ministry of Transport said in a joint press release.
This is in addition to the 16 next-of-kin who flew to Surabaya last night.
The release said that Indonesia has accepted Singapore’s offer of two teams of specialists and two sets of underwater locator beacon detectors to assist in locating the flight data recorders of the missing aircraft.
Singapore already has two C-130 aircrafts and two ships involved in the search operation.
Another ship sailed off this evening to join in the efforts and a submarine support and rescue vessel is ready to set sail.
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UPDATE (7.09PM): Ex-beauty queen and 9 family members missed AirAsia QZ8501 flight because they didn't read an e-mail
A former Indonesia beauty queen was supposed to be on the flight. But she and her family arrived at the airport after the plane had departed.
They didn't see an e-mail informing them of the change in departure time.
Read the story here.
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UPDATE (6.50PM): The New Paper photojournalist joins the Republic of Singapore Navy's landing ship tank (LST), the RSS Persistence, as it tries to search and locate AirAsia Flight QZ8501.
The LST will leave Changi Naval Base this evening (Dec 29) for Indonesia.
Look out for our reports from photojournalist Arrifin Jamar (below) as he files the latest reports from the search site.
The RSN has already sent the Formidable-class frigate, the RSS Supreme, and the missile corvette, the RSS Valour, to take part in the search efforts.
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UPDATE (6.40PM): Object spotted during sea search was not from AirAsia plane, Indonesia’s vice-president said on Monday, after reports that an Australian surveillance aircraft had found something.
"It has been checked and no sufficient evidence was found to confirm what was reported," Mr Jusuf Kalla said at a press conference at Surabaya airport.
Mr Kalla said there were 15 ships and 30 aircraft searching the area.
Source: AFP
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UPDATE (5.25PM): Indonesia vice-president Jusuf Kalla, who is in Surabaya, tweeted that the search will continue even in bad weather.
He added that the government will not give a deadline for the search.
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UPDATE (3.20PM): AFP reported that the Australian AP - 3C Orion aircraft has detected an object in the waters around Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan.
More details to come.
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LATEST (3PM): Biology teacher at Hwa Chong Institution among those who were on board the missing flight, reported Chinese daily Zaobao.
Among those who were on board the missing AirAsia QZ8051 flight is a 26-year-old biology teacher from Hwa Chong Institution.
The teacher is believed to be Maria Florentina Widodo, reported Chinese daily Zaobao.
Widodo is a new teacher who only graduated from the National Institute of Education just last year.
She had previously graduated from the National University of Singapore, where she was a member of the school's guitar club.
Miss Widodo's friend, who did not want to be named, said that she was a good, responsible friend who always liked to help people.
She had even considered bringing her students to Cambodia for social work.
Meanwhile, her father FY Widodo posted a photo of the two of them on another flight on his Facebook profile page.
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LATEST (2.45PM): CEO of Indonesia's AirAsia, Sunu Widyatmoko, said the company is planning to retire its QZ8501 flight code, newspaper The Star said.
But the process may take time.
He said:
“We have forwarded our suggestion to the headquarters, but we are still waiting for the approval and coordination from the headquarters."
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UPDATE (1.55PM): Group CEO of AirAsia Tony Fernandes tweets about the 'incredible support' he's getting from the people of Indonesia.
Says staff in Indonesia are doing 150 per cent for guests.
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UPDATE (1.36PM): AirAsia Indonesia released an updated statement on its Facebook page:
SURABAYA, 29TH DECEMBER 2014 – AirAsia Indonesia has received confirmation from The National Search and Rescue Agency Republic of Indonesia (BASARNAS) that an international search and rescue mission from Indonesia, Singapore and Malaysia has been mobilized in the search of flight QZ8501.
The mission in Surabaya has resumed today at 06.00 AM LT (GMT+7).
AirAsia Indonesia continue to support these efforts and has been actively cooperating with the search and rescue authorities.
AirAsia Indonesia’s primary focus remains on the families and Sunu Widyatmoko, Chief Executive Officer of AirAsia Indonesia is currently stationed at the family centre in Surabaya.
We have been keeping the families updated on the search and rescue efforts as well as provide emotional support.
Another group of AirAsia officials are providing the same to the families based in Singapore.
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LATEST (1.10PM): Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) chief F. H. Bambang Soelistyo told The Straits Times that the search for missing AirAsia QZ8501 focused on two sea areas between Tanjung Pandan on Belitung island and Kalimantan.
The total search area has been divided into seven sectors - with Indonesian Armed Forces planes focusing their efforts in three areas, and aircraft from Malaysia and Singapore in another two areas each.
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UPDATE (1.00PM): Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) chief F. H. Bambang Soelistyo said the search for missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501 will take time.
In a press conference at the office of Airport Authority, Tangerang, he said:
"From previous experience, the discovery in the water is not easy. Adam Air only took 8 months."
Adam Air went down in West Sulawesi , on January 1 , 2007.
The tragedy claimed 102 lives then. The black box was found about 8 months after the plane disappeared.
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UPDATE (12.05pm): Indonesia will review the operations of Indonesia AirAsia, Transportation Minister Ignasius Jonan said told reporters on Monday.
“Much will be reviewed in terms of its business operations and in terms of air transportation business, so that there are safety improvements.”
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UPDATE (11am): The AirAsia plane which went missing with 162 people on board en route to Singapore is believed to have "landed in the sea", said Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency chief.
BBC News reported that Indonesian transport ministry official Tatang Kurniadi said:
"Our primary task is to find the plane. We are co-operating with every possible department, and relevant countries.
"This includes the department responsible for aircraft design, the aircraft manufacturer from France, and relevant operational teams from AirAsia and Malaysia."
According to BBC, First Admiral Sigit Setiayana of the Surabaya air force said that visibility has been good this morning. He hopes they will be able to find the plane soon.
Earlier today, a separate AirAsia QZ8501 flight from Surabaya to Singapore which took off this morning landed safely at Changi Airport, Terminal 1 at 8.35am.
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UPDATE (9.45AM): The Australian Defence Force (ADF) has deployed a Royal Australian Air Force AP-3C Orion Maritime Patrol Aircraft to assist in the Indonesian-led search for missing AirAsia flight QZ8501.
The Australian AP-3C Orion took off from Darwin this morning.
Chief of Defence Force, Air Chief Marshal Mark Binskin, said the ADF was ready and willing to support its Indonesian friends in the search for Air Asia flight QZ8501.
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UPDATE (9.15am): The Singapore girl Zoe Choi, two, and her British father Choi Chi Man feared missing were not supposed to be on the fateful Air Asia flight.
The family could not get four seats on the earlier plane as they tried to travel back to Singapore so Mr Choi booked on a later one, it is believed.
He only bought tickets for the doomed flight on Boxing Day (Dec 26), British media like The Telegraph reported.
Originally from Hull, Yorkshire, Mr Choi lives in Singapore but works in Indonesia where he is a unit managing director for electronic manufacturing firm Alstom Power.
He is in his 40s. An engineering graduate of Essex University, he is understood to have a brother and sister in the UK.
Mr Choi and his daughter were on board along with 155 Indonesians, one from Malaysia, one from France and three South Koreans.
Former colleague Steve Hayler, 62, said: “ “He was a genuinely nice bloke. I remember him as an expert networker who was brilliant at making contacts."
Mr Hayler said he met Mr Cho when they both worked for a company making industrial electrical control equipment in Warwick before they later worked together at the French global firm Schneider Electric.
Mr Choi worked for a time for Schneider Electric in Paris before relocating to the South East Asia and then getting a new job earlier this year in Jakarta, Indonesia.
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UPDATE (7.40am): Reports say search for missing Air Asia plane #QZ8501 has resumed.
Singapore sent a second C-130 aircraft to help in search operations this morning.
Mindef said in a statement that two Republic of Singapore Navy ships sailed for Indonesia:
In addition to the two Republic of Singapore Air Force (RSAF) C-130 aircraft... the Republic of Singapore Navy (RSN) had also put a Formidable-class frigate, Landing ship tank, Missile corvette and Submarine support and rescue vessel on standby.
At 11.55pm on Sunday evening, Second Minister for Defence Mr Chan Chun Sing sent off the Formidable-class frigate (RSS Supreme) and Missile corvette (RSS Valour), which were being deployed in support of the SAL operation in Indonesia.
He said:
“I believe that with the strong relationship that Indonesia and Singapore has built up over many years, which transcends all levels from the highest political level to the military commanders, we will be able to work closely and execute the search and locate operation effectively.”
Related report: QZ8501 Day 1: Air Asia flight QZ8501 from Surabaya to Singapore missing
Related report: Sorrow in Surabaya, grim in Changi
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