189 feared dead as Indonesian jet crashes

Workers of PT Pertamina examine recovered debris of what is believed from the crashed Lion Air flight JT610, onboard Prabu ship owned by PT Pertamina, off the shore of Karawang regency, West Java province, Indonesia, Oct. 29, 2018. (Photo/Agencies)

Contact lost 13 minutes after the Boeing 737 operated by Lion Air takes off from Jakarta

An Indonesian jet carrying 189 passengers and crew crashed into the sea on Monday shortly after takeoff from Jakarta, prompting a major search and rescue effort in the region, the country's disaster agency reported.

The Jakarta Post newspaper said the plane, a Boeing 737 Max 8 operated by Lion Air, took off from Jakarta at 6:20 am and contact was lost 13 minutes later.

It was bound for Pangkal Pinang on the Indonesian island of Bangka.

No survivors from flight JT610 have been found.

Search and rescue teams are trying to locate those on board. The passengers included one baby and two children.

Nugroho Budi Wiryanto, operations chief for the Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency, said some 300 soldiers, police and fishermen are involved in the search, adding, "We're hoping for a miracle from God."

He said the water depth at the scene was "favorable" for rescue divers, but strong underwater currents could be a problem.

Yusuf Latief, head of media communication for the rescue agency, told Xinhua News Agency, "Several body parts and items have been found at the scene."

Muhammad Syaugi, head of the agency, said: "We don't know yet whether there are any survivors. We hope, we pray, but we cannot confirm."

Rescuers recovered various documents, including ID cards, passports and driver's licenses. Authorities had still to locate the main body of the plane, but they had found debris, Nugroho told The Jakarta Post.

"We have gone all out in deploying the equipment we have (for the operation)," he said. 

Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Lu Kang said Beijing had not received any information to indicate that there might be Chinese citizens on the plane.

Lu expressed deep condolences for those on board and sincere sympathy to their families. He said China would follow up with the search and rescue process.

Indonesian President Joko Widodo said he had ordered the National Commission for Transportation Safety to investigate the crash.

Speaking at a conference in Bali, he said rescuers were working to find victims, and urged Indonesians "to keep on praying".

He added that he felt the anxiety of the families of those on board the plane and hoped they could remain calm.

The plane's two black boxes, or flight recorders, had been located, a senior rescue official told Xinhua.

Soerjanto Tjahjono, an official with Indonesia's transport safety committee, said: "We will collect all data from the control tower. The plane is so modern, it transmits data ... and we will review that, too. But the most important (things) are the black boxes."

The agency received a report saying that air traffic control had lost contact with the flight.

The flight deck had been given permission to return to Jakarta before the crash. Yohanes Sirait, a spokesman for the Indonesian aviation authorities, said a request had been received from the cockpit for a return shortly after departure.

"The control tower allowed that, but then lost contact," he said. That was 13 minutes after takeoff.

Flightradar24, a Swedish internet service that displays real-time commercial aircraft flight information on a map, showed a rapid increase in speed and a loss of altitude in a final signal from the plane. This was indicated by a plummeting green line on a graph.

The plane only reached an altitude of 1,580 meters (5,184 feet) during the 13 minutes it was airborne.