Fuselage of AirAsia Plane Discovered

Many victims believed to be inside; photos of plane posted on Facebook
By Matt Cantor,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 14, 2015 6:59 AM CST
Fuselage of AirAsia Plane Discovered
Chief of the National Transportation Safety Committee Tatang Kurniadi, left, speaks during a press conference in Pangkalan Bun, Indonesia, Jan. 12, 2015.   (AP Photo/Achmad Ibrahim)

More than two weeks after AirAsia lost contact with Flight 8501, the plane's fuselage has been found in the Java Sea, the BBC reports. Photos of the body of the plane, taken by a search robot, were posted on the Singaporean defense minister's Facebook page. The company's slogan, "Now everyone can fly," is visible on the aircraft. "I hope that with the fuselage located, some form of closure can come to the families of the victims to ease their grief," defense minister Ng Eng Hen says on the social media site.

The fuselage is believed to contain the bodies of many missing victims. One of the wings remains attached, CNN reports. Yesterday, before the discovery was confirmed, the head of the search operation discussed its removal: "If it is not too heavy, we may lift the whole piece and evacuate the victims," SB Supriyadi said. "If it's too heavy, we may then swim into the fuselage and pull out the bodies one by one before lifting it." (More AirAsia stories.)

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