Indonesian divers retrieve black box of Lion Air crash

JAKARTA, 01 Nov 2018 [Fik/News Sources]: The black box and cockpit voice recorder of the Lion Air plane crash was found Thursday, according to the country's Naval Information Service.

Lion Air flight JT 610 was traveling from Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang when it crashed into the Java Sea on Monday. All people on board are presumed to be dead.

“It is confirmed. We have found the black box,” Mohamad Zaenal, head of the Naval Information Service, told Anadolu Agency.

Indonesian Navy divers have retrieved the device at a depth of about 30 meters (98 ft) in waters off Tanjung Karawang, West Java on the fourth day of the search.

According to the Indonesian Navy diver who found the device, Sertu Hendra, the black box was found separated from the plane fuselage.

“We followed the signals and narrowed the search area. We dug the location where the ping sound was heard and found the black box,” Hendra said.

The device had been collected by the Baruna Jaya I Ship belonging to the National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas).

The Boeing 737 Max 8 aircraft was flying from Jakarta to Pangkal Pinang at 06:10 local time (2330GMT Sunday) but lost contact with air traffic control about 13 minutes after it took off.

The plane carried a total of 189 people, including 181 passengers and 8 crew members.