Crashed Indonesia Boeing 737 was likely intact when it hit the sea, investigators say

Two days after the crash, the search for black boxes and flight recorders continues

The National Transportation Safety Committee shows evidence of debris from the Sriwijaya Air plane that crash at Tanjung Priok Port  on January 11, 2021 in Jakarta, Indonesia.  (Getty)

The Indonesian Boeing 737 that went missing with 62 people on board on 9 January possibly remained intact right until the moment it ruptured after crashing into the sea, the investigators of National Transportation Safety Committee (KNKT) have said.

“We don't know for sure, but if we look at the debris, they're scattered in an area that is not too wide," Nurcahyo Utomo, an investigator at KNKT, told Reuters.

“It possibly ruptured when it hit waters because if it had exploded midair, the debris would be distributed more widely,” he added.  

The Sriwijaya Air’s passenger plane crashed shortly after taking off from the country's capital of Jakarta on Saturday to land in Pontianak on Borneo island. The flight disappeared from radar screens four minutes after take off and crashed into the sea.

The 27 years old Boeing 737-500 jet plunged nearly 10,000ft in less than 60 seconds into the sea. Eyewitnesses reported that they heard two explosions.

The two black boxes of the plane have been located in the sea with divers now trying to retrieve them.

The rescuers have so far managed to find one of the jet’s turbines, emergency chute, the rim of a wheel along with clothing of some of the passengers and other personal belongings.

Rescue divers have managed to spot human remains under the water and divers are now trying to retrieve the bodies. DNA samples have been collected from the families of doomed flight and would now be matched with the remains found from the crash site.

The authorities said, “the quicker they can find victims” and the parts of plane, the better it would be for investigation as it heavily relies on retrieving flight recorders.

This is the first major air crash in the country after a problem-plagued Lion Air Boeing 737 MAX also plunged into the Java sea with 189 people on board in 2018. 737 MAX airplanes were grounded following the fatal crash in the wake of poor software.

Meanwhile, the families of the passengers continued to share heart-wrenching last-messages and stories of their loved ones. While some awaited the bodies of their family members, others kept their hopes up for good news.

The families of two pilots, Diego Mamahit and Afwan, who goes by only one name, believe the two would have managed to escape the crash.

“We the family still hope for good news,” a family member of Afwan told Detik.com.