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Indonesian Ministry Not Ready to Confirm AirAsia Plane's Crash

© REUTERS / Enny Nuraheni/FilesFlight QZ8501 lost contact with air traffic control at 07:24 a.m. local time (00:24 GMT), according to a statement issued by AirAsia
Flight QZ8501 lost contact with air traffic control at 07:24 a.m. local time (00:24 GMT), according to a statement issued by AirAsia - Sputnik International
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AirAsia issued a statement confirming the crash of its aircraft earlier in the day. According to the statement, flight QZ8501 en route from Surabaya, Indonesia to Singapore lost contact with air traffic control at 07:24 a.m. local time (00:24 GMT). There were 162 people on board.

JAKARTA, December 28 (Sputnik) — Indonesian Ministry of Transportation is not ready to confirm information about the crash AirAsia's aircraft, the ministry's Air Transport Director Djoko Murjatmodjo said Sunday.

AirAsia flight QZ 8501 has crashed into water after experiencing severe turbulence - Sputnik International
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AirAsia Plane With 162 Aboard Feared Crashed Into Water Due to Turbulence
"At this point, we do not want to confirm anything, but the loss of communication with the aircraft," Detik newspaper quoted Murjatmodjo as saying.

According to the statement issued by AirAsia, air traffic control lost contact with flight QZ8501 at 07:24 local time (00:24 GMT). There were 155 passengers on board, including 17 children, two pilots and five cabin crew. Most passengers on board were Indonesian; three passengers were South Koreans, and one French, Malaysian and Singaporean.

The plane was operated by an Indonesian captain, who had a substantial number of flying hours a total of 6,100, and a French co-pilot with a total of 2,275 flying hours, according to AP.

Search and rescue operations are being conducted under the guidance of the Indonesian Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). AirAsia Indonesia is assisting the investigation.

At Surabaya airport, from where the plane took off, passengers' relatives sat, waiting in a room, many of them in tears and talking on their phones, AP said.

AirAsia Indonesia operates domestic flights within the Indonesian archipelago and international flights to Malaysia, Singapore, Australia and Thailand. The company is an affiliate of the Malaysian company AirAsia. In 2007, AirAsia Indonesia was banned from operating flights to the European Union (EU) due to safety concerns; however, the ban was lifted in July 2010, the BBC reports.

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