Efforts to locate victims
and wreckage of AirAsia flight QZ8501 which crashed into the Java Sea
in Indonesia on Sunday are being hampered by stormy weather and strong
tides.
Indonesian officials have confirmed that remains and debris found in the waters off Borneo are from the plane.The authorities say that seven bodies have now been retrieved.
The Airbus A320-200, carrying 162 people from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore, disappeared on Sunday.
Indonesian President Joko Widodo has promised a "massive search by the ships and helicopters" with the focus on recovering the bodies of victims.
A public memorial will be held in Surabaya on Wednesday evening local time, and the governor of East Java province has told the BBC that all New Year Eve celebrations have been cancelled.
"Now we are focused on praying for the victims," said Soekarwo, who uses one name like many Indonesians. "This is a big tragedy for Indonesia and we will do our best for the victims and their families."
Families have had to endure an agonising wait for news
As the relatives of the QZ8501 passengers and crew wait for the bodies of their loved ones to return to Surabaya, the Indonesian officials are trying to assure them that everything is being done to ensure a swift process.
It is day four since the aircraft went missing from the radar and concerns are growing that the remains will be too difficult to identify. News of bad weather hampering the recovery efforts is another setback for the grieving relatives.
Many say the government and Air Asia have been handling the tragedy as well as they could but all the relatives want is for their loved ones to be properly identified so they can be laid to rest.
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But officials said heavy rain, strong winds and waves of up to 3m (10ft) had forced them to suspend the air operation, though ships already in place were continuing the search.
The search is now focused on the area of sea where the plane is believed to have crashed
Officials are collecting information on all the passengers from friends and relatives
Detailed information will be used to help with identifying victims once they are found and brought ashore
The bodies are on board two ships but helicopters sent to bring them back to the nearest town, Pangkalan Bun, have had to turn back because of the weather, he said.
The navy had reported on Tuesday that more than 40 bodies had been recovered, but spokesman Manahan Simorangkir later told AFP news agency the figure had been a miscommunication by his staff.
'Shadow' under water On board the plane were 137 adult passengers, 17 children and one infant, along with two pilots and five crew.
Pictures of debris were taken by search and rescue aircraft
A tent for taking DNA samples has been set up near the airport at Surabaya
It is not yet clear what happened to the plane but its last communication was a request from air traffic control to move up to avoid bad weather. The pilot never responded when given permission.
Officials say rescuers are "very busy" with the salvage operation
Pilot's friend: "He was very professional and experienced and a humble man"
A three-day search ended on Tuesday when remains including
aircraft parts, luggage and the bodies believed to be passengers were
found in the Karimata Strait, south-west of Pangkalan Bun in the Borneo
province of Central Kalimantan.Bambang Soelistyo said a shadow had been spotted under the water, which appeared to be in the shape of a plane.
Pictures of debris and bodies were shown on Indonesian TV to distraught relatives waiting at Surabaya's Juanda international airport.
Those watching the pictures were visibly shocked, with some collapsing.
Lanny Hartono cancelled her seat on flight QZ8501 two weeks before it flew
Malaysia, Australia and Thailand are also involved, while the US destroyer USS Sampson has been sent to the zone.
AirAsia previously had an excellent safety record and there were no fatal accidents involving its aircraft.
The head of the airline, Tony Fernandes, said he was "absolutely devastated" and that the priority was on the wellbeing of passengers' families.
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