The fuselage of crashed AirAsia flight QZ8501 has been located in the Java Sea, say searchers.
It is believed the majority of the 162 victims of the doomed flight will be found inside the main body of the plane when it is hauled out of the water.
Singapore’s defence minister Ng Eng Hen posted underwater photographs taken by a Singaporean search robot on his Facebook page, which clearly show the words ‘Now everyone can fly’ painted on the side of the plane.
Raising the fuselage is expected to difficult and authorities have not yet worked out the best course of action. It is possible the fuselage could be lifted out of the water before the bodies are removed, or they could be taken out one by one while it remains in the sea.
Flight QZ8501 crashed into the Java Sea while flying from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore. The cause of the crash is not yet known but the flight recorders – or black box – have been recovered and these are expected to provide an insight into what went wrong.
