Plane with 16 children, 146 others disappears

There was grief across the globe on
Sunday as two separate disasters in
Indonesia and Greece put the lives
of 562 air and sea passengers at
high risk.
The first disaster was the
disappearance of a Singapore-
bound AirAsia commercial jet
carrying 162 people from the radar
in Surabaya, Indonesia.
Just as the news spread, a ferry
carrying nearly 500 people caught
fire off the Greek island of Corfu in
Greece.
The AirAsia plane disappearance
comes nearly 10 months after
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370,
dropped off radar over Southeast
Asia with 239 people on board.
The AirAsia Flight QZ8501 was said
to have flown at 38,000 feet over
the Java Sea between the islands of
Belitung and Borneo — a heavily
traveled shipping channel with
shallow waters when it lost contact
with the radar.
The search operation for the
missing jet was halted last night
but would resume at about 7am on
Monday depending on weather
condition, the Indonesian
Transportation Ministry said.
The UK Guardian, said in its report
on Sunday that before
communication was lost, the pilot,
an Indonesian named Iriyanto,
contacted air traffic control in
Jakarta and requested to rise to
38,000ft to avoid a storm cloud.
At 11.41am, the management of the
airline posted a statement to its
Facebook page, saying, “AirAsia
Indonesia regrets to confirm that
flight QZ8501 from Surabaya to
Singapore has lost contact with air
traffic control at 07.24hrs this
(Sunday) morning.
“At the present time, we
unfortunately have no further
information regarding the status of
the passengers and crew members
on board, but we will keep all
parties informed as more
information becomes available.”
Of the people on board the Airbus
A320-200, 155 are Indonesians,
three South Koreans, a Briton, a
Frenchman, a Malaysian and a
Singaporean.
Seventeen children, including one
infant, are among the passengers,
the carrier said. Seven of the
people on board are crew
members.
The Cable News Network reported
that at the airport in Surabaya,
loved ones gathered and wept as
they waited for any word on the
passengers.
Some took cell phone pictures of a
flight manifest posted on a wall.
The black-and-white papers
showed every passenger’s name
and seat number, but not their fate.
Others simply sat and dabbed tears
from their eyes.
“Our concern right now is for the
relatives and the next of kin,”
AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes, said
during a news conference in
Surabaya.
He confirmed that storm clouds
caused the pilot to ask for a change
in flight plan, but added, “We don’t
want to speculate whether
weather was a factor. We really
don’t know.”
Earlier, the Governor of East Java,
the National Search and Rescue
Agency of the Republic of
Indonesia, the Airport Authority of
Indonesia, the Airport Operator
(Angkasa Pura I) and the
management of the airline met
with the members of the families
to update them on the latest
developments.
Sunu Widyatmoko, CEO of AirAsia
Indonesia, said, “We are deeply
shocked and saddened by this
incident. We are cooperating with
the relevant authorities to the
fullest extent to determine the
cause of this incident. In the
meantime, our main priority is
keeping the families of our
passengers and colleagues
informed about the latest
developments.
“We will do everything possible to
support them as the investigation
continues and have already
mobilised a support team to help
take care of their immediate needs,
including accommodation and
travel arrangements. A briefing
centre has also been set up in
Surabaya for the families.”
“For the families in Singapore,
there is also an emergency briefing
room at Changi International
Airport Terminal Two, where AirAsia
Indonesia will be providing regular
updates.
“We have also established an
Emergency Call Centre that is
available for those seeking
information about relatives or
friends who may have been on
board the flight. The number is
+622129270811.”
But as word spread of the missing
plane, the airline changed the
colour of its logo on its website and
social media accounts from red to
gray.
Pope Francis prayed for the missing
passengers.
At the Greek island of Corfu, about
500 passengers of a ferry were
trapped by fire on Sunday as gale-
force winds and choppy seas
hampered their evacuation.
According to USA Today, Greek and
Italian rescue helicopters and
vessels struggled to reach the
stricken ferry, with nearby
merchant ships lining up to form a
wall against the raging gusts.
The fire broke out on the car deck
of the Italian-flagged Norman
Atlantic, travelling from the Greek
port of Patras to Ancona, Italy with
423 passengers and 55 crew
members on board.
Passengers, stranded on a high
deck for more than six hours, told
Greek media that lifeboats from
surrounding vessels had been
unable to take them off due to the
high seas.
“The fire is still burning,” Greek
passenger Sofoklis Styliaras told
private Mega television. “On the
lower deck, where the lifeboats
are, our shoes were starting to melt
from the heat. … There’s nowhere
else for us to go. It’s impossible to
walk on the lower deck because of
the heat.”
Merchant Marine spokesman Nikos
Lagadianos said a life boat carrying
about 150 passengers had been
lowered into the water, but that
only 42 had been moved to a
nearby cargo ship.
Prime Minister Antonis Samaras was
in contact with his Italian
counterpart, Matteo Renzi, to
coordinate the operation “at the
highest level,” Greek government
officials said, adding that the
operation was now under Italian
control.
Greek authorities said sent five
helicopters and a military transport
plane to the area to assist in the
operation, with the ship reported
to be 78 kilometres northwest of
Corfu.
Italian Coast Guard spokesman
Marco Di Milla said the rescue
operations would likely last for
hours. An Italian Coast Guard boat
was at the scene, as well one
helicopter each from the Italian
Navy and Air Force.