AirAsia QZ8501: Tail of crashed plane found

Part of the tail of crashed AirAsia flight QZ8501
has been found in the Java Sea, Indonesian
searchers say.
The tail houses the "black boxes" - the voice and
flight data recorders - which could give
investigators clues as to the cause of the crash.
It was found in a secondary search area, lending
weight to theories that strong currents have
moved the debris.

The plane was lost en route from Surabaya,
Indonesia, to Singapore on 28 December, with
162 people aboard.
No survivors have been found.
Buried in mud
Part of the tail of the Airbus A320-200 was
spotted by teams involving divers and unmanned
underwater vehicles, search and rescue chief
Bambang Soelistyo said in Jakarta.
It is the first significant piece of wreckage from
the crash to be identified and was found in an
area some 30km (19 miles) from the initial
search area.

The part found has the AirAsia mark on it, Mr
Soelistyo said. It is buried in mud, in water 30m
(98ft)deep, and is believed to be upside down.
Despite powerful sea currents and murky water,
searchers managed to take photographs, he said.
On one piece, the letter A appears to be painted.
Only 40 bodies have been recovered so far but
the authorities believe many of the passengers
may still be strapped inside the main body of the
plane.