|
Fuel spill clue to missing jet
|
| Print |
|
E-mail
|
|
SCI-TECH
|
|
By Agencies
|
|
![Fragments of human hair and scalp were found washed shore and floating at sea [Reuters]](http://mwcnews.net/images/stories/Asia/9/Indonesian-airliner-1.jpg "Fragments of human hair and scalp were found washed shore and floating at sea [Reuters]") | | Fragments of human hair and scalp were found washed shore and floating at sea [Reuters] |
Rescuers are narrowing their search for an Indonesian airliner that went missing two weeks ago with 102 people on board after spotting a fuel spill off the west coast of Sulawesi.
Officials said the jet fuel found off Majene could lead rescuers to the main wreckage of the plane and to the plane's "black box" flight recorder.
Deep sea search efforts to locate the flight recorder, which can only transmit a signal to aid detection for 30 days, have been boosted after Singapore sent four detectors and six consultants at Indonesia's request.
The Indonesian navy will deploy four more ships on Monday to search in waters 1,700 metres deep for the main body of the 17-year-old aircraft operated by the Indonesian budget airline Adam Air.
Search hampered
First Air Marshal Eddy Suyanto, commander of the Makassar air base, said of the jet fuel trail: "This gives us a clear idea where the bigger pieces of the plane such as the wings are located."
Suyanto, who heads the search mission, had said the depth of the sea in areas where metal objects had been detected in the Makassar Strait was hampering efforts to find the fuselage. ![Parts of the jet have been found, but no survivors or bodies [Reuters]](http://mwcnews.net/images/stories/Asia/9/Indonesian-airliner-2.jpg "Parts of the jet have been found, but no survivors or bodies [Reuters]") | | Parts of the jet have been found, but no survivors or bodies [Reuters] |
Strong winds and heavy rain also continue to hamper search and rescue efforts.
Since the Boeing 737-400 vanished from radar screens on January 1 in bad weather, no bodies or survivors have been found despite a massive air, land and sea search.
Food trays, life vests and pieces of tyre had been found floating in the sea or washed up on beaches and part of the tail stabiliser was found in a fisherman's net.
Fragments of human hair and scalp that may have come from passengers were found on Sunday.
Recommend this article...
Tags: Indonesian airliner
|
Technorati Profile
