AirAsia QZ8501: Still No Sign Of Missing Jet, Search Covers Wider Area
With no sign of the missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501 after two days of surveillance, the search was widened on Tuesday in terms of a bigger area and more teams joining.
Four zones were added to the search area, while the number of search and rescue personnel increased to over 1,100 people who came from Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea, Japan and New Zealand helping the Indonesian teams, CNN reports.
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Bambang Sulistyo, head of Indonesia's search-and-rescue agency, opined on Monday that the jet had crashed and is likely in the bottom of the ocean. He asked for assistance from the UK, France and US for sonar devices to search underwater for the missing aircraft with 162 people on board.
In response to Indonesia request, the US Navy said the destroyer vessel USS Sampson would arrived at the search zone on Dec 30.
In a news release, the navy said, "The US Navy is working closely with the government of Indonesia to identify additional surface or airborne capabilities that best assist their search efforts."
There were some possible indicators of the missing jet such as an oil slick, a faint ping and objects found in the search zone, but authorities said these things are not automatic proof of the missing plane.
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