US Navy sends ship to assist AirAsia flight searching

The United States has sent a destroyer to the Java Sea to assist in searching for a missing AirAsia jetliner, US officials said Monday.

The USS Sampson was expected to arrive Tuesday in the search zone for Flight QZ8501, which lost contact on Sunday with 162 people on board.

"The US Navy is working closely with the government of Indonesia to identify additional surface or airborne capabilities that best assist their search efforts," the Navy's 7th Fleet said in a statement.

The State Department earlier said that the help was at the request of the Indonesian government.

"Our embassy in Jakarta is in close contact with Indonesian officials, and today, we received a request for assistance locating the airplane," said Jeffrey Rathke, a State Department spokesman.

Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby said the assistance "could include air, surface and sub-surface detection capabilities."

Indonesia, Malaysia and several other countries are searching for the missing plane, which went missing en route from Surabaya in Indonesia's east Java to Singapore after the pilots requested a change of flight plan in a stormy weather.
  Source: Xinhua - globaltimes.cn
30/12/14
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• AirAsia plane likely at sea bottom (Indonesia search chief)

AirAsia plane likely at sea bottom (Indonesia search chief)

The AirAsia plane with 162 people on board may have fallen into the bottom of the sea, 24 hours after the jetliner vanished from radar en route from Indonesia to Singapore, said Indonesia's National Search and Rescue Agency chief in Jakarta Monday.

"We assume the missing jet at the bottom of the sea based on the coordinates given to us and evaluation that the estimated crash position is in the sea," Bambang Soelistyo told the media at the Soekarno-Hatta main airport.

It can be expanded based on evaluation, he noted.

Should the projection be true, Indonesia needs to cooperate with other countries to bring the wreckage to the surface, Soelistyo said.

"We still do not have the equipment, we will borrow the devices from other countries," he said.

The official warned that the current may cause the wreckage of the plane to move.
  Xinhua - china.org.cn
  29/12/14
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• Flight From Indonesia to Singapore Loses Contact