Russian Plane Searches 116 Square Miles in AirAsia Plane Crash Area

Russian Emergency Ministry's Be-200 amphibious aircraft examined more than 116 square miles of water area in the search area of the crashed AirAsia Airbus, according to the statement of Russian Emergencies Ministry.

MOSCOW, January 7 (Sputnik) — A Russian Be-200 aircraft has searched over 116 square miles of the Java Sea in the area where the crashed AirAsia Airbus is expected to be, Russian Emergencies Ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.

"The Russian Emergency Ministry's detachment, being part of international team of rescuers, continues the search operation. The Emergency Ministry's Be-200 amphibious aircraft has examined more than 300 square kilometers [116 square miles] of water area in the search area," the ministry said.

On Monday, Russia's Be-200 aircraft found 30 objects in the search zone, including a body wearing a life preserver.

Russian divers are also taking part in the search operation, using the remote-controlled Folkon deepwater vehicle, designed to operate at depths of up to 1,000 meters (3,280 feet).

"Today Indonesian Air Force's helicopter delivered additional equipment for Russian divers in the Java sea," the Russian Emergencies Ministry said.

On December 28, AirAsia's Airbus A320-200 departed from the Indonesian city of Surabaya, en route to Singapore, and lost contact with air traffic control. Less than an hour after the takeoff, the pilot of flight QZ8501 requested permission to change the route and altitude due to bad weather conditions.

Of 162 passengers and crew on the aircraft, 40 bodies have been recovered and 24 have been identified, the head of Indonesian search-and-rescue agency Bambang Soelistyo said at a news conference Wednesday.