AIRASIA gives update to flight QZ8501, the passenger aircraft who has been
reported missing on its course from Surabaya.
AirAsia
Indonesia regrets to confirm that flight QZ8501 from Surabaya to Singapore has
lost contact with air traffic control at 07:24 (Surabaya LT) this morning. The
flight took off from Juanda International Airport in Surabaya at 0535 hour.
The
aircraft was an Airbus A320-200 with the registration number PK-AXC. There were
two pilots, four flight attendants and one engineer on board.
The
captain in command had a total of 6,100 flying hours and the first officer a
total of 2,275 flying hours. There were 155 passengers on board, with 138
adults, 16 children and 1 infant. Also on board were 2 pilots and 5 cabin crew.
Nationalities
of passengers and crew onboard are as below:
- 1 Singaporean
- 1 Malaysian
- 3 South Korean
- 157 Indonesian
At
this time, search and rescue operations are being conducted under the guidance
of The Indonesia of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA). AirAsia Indonesia is
cooperating fully and assisting the investigation in every possible way.
The
aircraft was on the submitted flight plan route and was requesting deviation
due to enroute weather before communication with the aircraft was lost while it
was still under the control of the Indonesian Air Traffic Control (ATC).
The
aircraft had undergone its last scheduled maintenance on 16 November 2014.
AirAsia
has established an Emergency Call Centre that is available for family or
friends of those who may have been on board the aircraft. The number is:
+622129850801.
AirAsia
will release further information as soon as it becomes available. Updated
information will also be posted on the AirAsia website, www.airasia.com.
