Search teams recover jet’s seats, wheels
JAKARTA: Seats, wheels and other parts of a crashed Indonesian Lion Air jet were hauled from the depths on Friday, as authorities analyzed black box data that may explain why the new plane plummeted into the Java Sea, killing 189 people.
Search teams have been scouring the seabed for the fuselage of the Boeing-737 MAX 8, which plunged into the waters off Indonesia’s northern coast shortly after takeoff Monday despite only having been in service a few months.
“There is a lot of little debris, plane wheels, and seats— all totally destroyed and in pieces,” said Isswarto, commander of the Indonesian navy’s search-andrescue division.
Divers were searching an area about 25-35 meters deep, but parts than earlier in the week, he added.
“They’re scattered everywhere and some may have been washed away by the current.”
Dozens of body bags containing remains have been recovered from the crash site so far.
Television images showed divers tying ropes to twisted plane parts scattered along the seafloor, as navy personnel hauled a pair of wheels from the jet aboard a ship.
Search teams have also determined the location of part of the plane’s engine, authorities said.
On Thursday, one of the plane’s black boxes, which airlines are required to install in jets, was recovered as well as parts of its landing gear.
The black box could offer investigators their best chance of discovering why such a new jet crashed. The devices help explain nearly 90 percent of all crashes, according to aviation experts.
The devices record information about the speed, altitude and direction of the plane as well
The single-aisle Boeing plane, en route from Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang city, is one of the world’s newest and most advanced commercial passenger jets.
Boeing and US National Trans have joined the Indonesian team in sifting through twisted metal plane parts and piles of passengers’ torn clothing, shoes, wallets and phones.
Passengers’ remains are being sent to hospital for DNA iden for one of the passengers held on Thursday.
Many other victims have yet to be found although there are hopes more can be recovered from the bulk of the wreckage, including those who may still be strapped to their seats.
Lion Air’s admission that the jet had a technical issue on a pre fatal dive- have raised questions about whether it had mechanical faults such as a speed-andaltitude system malfunction.
The accident has also resurrected concerns about Indonesia’s poor air safety record which until recently saw its carriers facing years-long bans from entering European Union and US airspace.