Divers spot main wreckage of crashed Lion Air jet in Java Sea

Indonesian diver had earlier recovered one set of wheels from the crashed Lion Air plane, now they have seen the main wreckage. - AFP

Indonesian divers found the main wreckage of the Lion Air plane that crashed into the Java Sea, a breakthrough in a week-long search for victims and the black box that holds the key to unraveling the reason for the accident.

Divers who have been scouring a 270 square-mile (700 sq-km) area since the jet crashed on Oct. 29 spotted the Boeing 737 Max 8 jet’s fuselage on Saturday (Nov 3).

This was told by M. Syaugi, the chief of the National Search and Rescue Agency, to reporters in Jakarta on Saturday.

The search crew is focused on retrieving the wreckage now, he said.

“We have made major breakthroughs as we have recovered two turbines, one wheel,” Syaugi said.

“There are reports of team members seeing the body of the plane.”

Indonesian search crews have recovered a flight data recorder, both the engines, a part of the landing gear, body parts of victims and personal belongings since Lion Air flight JT610 carrying 189 people plunged into the sea.

Ping locators also picked a faint signal from possibly the cockpit voice recorder, Syaugi said.

A diver, who was volunteering in the search operations, died on Friday, he said. - Bloomberg