Jakarta : Indonesia's search for dozens of victims still unaccounted for from last month's crash of an AirAsia passenger jet could end within days if no more bodies are found, a senior government official said on Wednesday.
The Airbus A320 vanished from radar screens in bad weather over the Java Sea on Dec. 28, less than half-way into a two-hour flight from Surabaya, Indonesia's second-biggest city, to Singapore. All 162 people on board were killed.
Indonesia's civilian National Search and Rescue Agency said it would scour the sea for bodies for at least another week.
"Within one week we will evaluate (our search) depending on the result," agency chief Fransiskus Bambang Soelistyo told reporters. "If we can find one or two more bodies, that means we have the opportunity to prolong the operation."
The military withdrew from the search on Tuesday, apologising to the victims' families for not being able to do more after a month of work.
A multinational search and recovery operation has found 70 bodies in the Java Sea and had hoped to find more after finding the fuselage of the plane. But days of rough weather and poor underwater visibility hampered navy divers' efforts.
Divers have recovered both the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from the sea floor.
Indonesia's National Transportation Safety Committee will submit its initial findings on the crash this week to the International Civil Aviation Organization, though only the final report will be made public.
Investigators say they have yet to start their analysis of the aircraft's two "black box" flight recorders and have been compiling other data for the inquiry.
Indonesian Transport Minister Ignasius Jonan has said that, based on radar data, the plane had climbed faster than normal in its final minutes, and then stalled.
Investigators have found no evidence of foul play.
The Airbus A320 vanished from radar screens in bad weather over the Java Sea on Dec. 28, less than half-way into a two-hour flight from Surabaya, Indonesia's second-biggest city, to Singapore. All 162 people on board were killed.
Indonesia's civilian National Search and Rescue Agency said it would scour the sea for bodies for at least another week.
The military withdrew from the search on Tuesday, apologising to the victims' families for not being able to do more after a month of work.
Advertisement
Divers have recovered both the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder from the sea floor.
Advertisement
Investigators say they have yet to start their analysis of the aircraft's two "black box" flight recorders and have been compiling other data for the inquiry.
Advertisement
Investigators have found no evidence of foul play.
© Thomson Reuters 2015
COMMENTS
Advertisement
To Enjoy "Days Of Peace" In Indonesia Like Tanishaa Mukerji, Visit These 5 Scenic Islands Indonesia Safari Park Visitor Throws Plastic Bag In Hippo's Mouth, Sparks Outrage Bali Coral Reefs Ruined By Bleaching As Sea Temperature Rises What Trump Rally Shooter Did On Last Day Of His Life Trainee IAS Officer Puja Khedkar Recalled To Academy, Training Put On Hold Engineer Stole NEET Question Paper From Exam Body's Trunk, Arrested By CBI Adani Group-Backed Sirius Digitech Acquires Cloud Platform Firm Coredge.io In Haryana, Amit Shah's Anti-Congress Warning On Muslim Reservation Swiggy, Zomato Might Soon Deliver Alcohol In These States: Report Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.