Stricken AirAsia plane soared 'as fast as a
fighter jet' and then dropped almost vertically into Java Sea as if being
thrust down by a giant hand, crash experts revealed today
- Plane behaved in ways 'bordering on edge of logic' before disappearing
- Craft soared up at 'unprecedented' rate before falling almost vertically
- Weather was so extreme pilots could not have saved 162 people on board
- First body to be pulled from ocean identified and handed back to family
- More bodies found by search teams today bringing total recovered to nine
- But workers warn it could be a week before plane's black box is found
Published: 06:27 EST, 1 January 2015 | Updated:
15:48 EST, 1 January 2015
The AirAsia jet which plunged into the Java Sea rose up as
fast as a fighter jet and then dropped almost vertically into the water as if
being thrust down by a giant hand, crash experts agreed today.
Their conclusion is that the Airbus 320-200 was in the grip
of weather so freakishly extreme that there was nothing the pilots could have
done to save the jet and all 162 people on board.
The plane behaved in ways ‘bordering on the edge of logic,’
Indonesian aviation analyst Gerry Soejatman said after examining figures leaked
from the official air crash investigation team.
The news came as the first victim of the crash was
identified and handed back to her family, and rescuers pulled two more bodies
from the ocean, bringing the total recovered to nine.
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Experts examining flight data leaked
from the AirAsia crash investigation said the plane behaved in ways 'bordering
on the edge of logic' after rising thousands of feet into the air before
falling almost vertically
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Analysts agreed the aircraft had been
buffeted by 'freakishly extreme' weather making it impossible to save any of
the 162 people on board (pictured, rescue workers recover a body today bringing
the total to nine)
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The fresh analysis came as the first
victim of the crash was identified as Hayati Lutfiah Hamid and her remains
were handed over to her family in emotional scenes at a hospital in Surabaya
The body of Hayati Lutfiah Hamid was identified by
medical workers from surgical scars, a necklace bearing her initials, her
fingerprints, and a red name badge pinned to her clothes.
Officials have yet to speculate on what caused AirAsia
flight A320-200 to plunge into the sea 40 minutes into a flight from Surabaya
to Singapore.
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Efforts by dive teams to recover the plane's black box,
which will contain vital data on how the tragedy unfolded, have been hampered
by poor weather as search teams warn it could be a week before the device is
located and brought to the surface.
But today Mr Soejatman said the jet climbed at a speed that
would have been impossible for the pilot to have achieved - and then plunged
straight down ‘like a piece of metal being thrown down.'
‘It’s really hard to comprehend…the way it goes down is
bordering on the edge of logic.’
Australian aviation expert, Peter Marosszeky, from the
University of NSW, told the Sydney Morning Herald that, in contrast, he was
baffled by the extremely low speed of the descent - as low as 61 knots - which
would suggest the plane was heading almost straight down, explaining why it has
been found in water just 10km from its last point of radar contact.
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Search workers promised an 'all-out
effort' to recover more bodies today as poor weather conditions, which had
hampered previous attempts, finally cleared
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While more bodies have been recovered
today, workers said it could be a week before the plane's black box is located
as poor weather was making the task of finding it extremely difficult
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It is the peak of Indonesia's rainy
season, meaning high winds, rough seas and driving rain have forced search
teams to call off operations several times
Both experts are in agreement that the jet went down almost
vertically - and also concluded that a freak weather pattern that placed the
aircraft under extraordinary forces was to blame for its plight.
Earlier in the week, AirAsia chief executive Tony Fernandes
- who vowed today to fly home with the body of 22-year-old stewardess
Khairunnisada Haidar once she has been formally identified - suggested the jet
had encountered ‘very unique weather.’
Mr Soejatman meanwhile remains convinced that the reason for
the crash, while officially a mystery, is possibly because the aircraft was
caught in a severe updraft, followed by an equally severe ground draft.
He said that leaked figures showed the plane climbed at a
virtually unprecedented rate of 6000ft to 9000ft per minute and ‘you can’t do
that at altitude in an Airbus 320 with pilot action.’
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In total seven victims of the crash
have been found so far, as dive teams have promised an 'all out effort' to find
more bodies today (pictured, bodies arrive at Surabaya police hospital)
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Rescue workers have identified a large
'shadow' on the bottom of the ocean which they believe could be the plane, but
dive teams have so far been unable to reach it due to dire weather conditions
The most that could normally be expected, he said, would be
1000ft to 1500ft on a sustained basis, gaining 3000ft in a burst.
But then the aircraft fell at an even more incredible rate
of 11,000ft a minute, with extraordinary bursts of up to 24,000ft a minute -
figures higher than the Air France A330 Airbus that crashed into the Atlantic
in 2009, killing 228 passengers after attaining baffling ascent and descent
rates.
Mr Marosszeky agreed that a climb rate of at least 6000ft a
minute would indicate a ‘severe weather event,’ because that rate of climb was
a ‘domain for jet fighters.’
Howwever, Dudi Sudibyo, a senior editor of aviation magazine
Angkasa, disagreed with that analysis, claiming that the pilot managed to land
on the sea before the craft was overwhelmed.
First
AirAsia plane crash victim buried in Indonesia
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A minesweeping vessel and private
search craft have identified a large object which is likely to be the plane,
but have yet to pick up any 'pings' emitted by the black box recorder
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Officials say it is likely that there
are still scores of bodies trapped inside the plane wreckage as passengers were
likely told to fasten their seatbelts due to the stormy weather
Mr Sudibyo said that emergency locator transmitters on board
the aircraft would be set to go off after automatically after a heavy impact.
Because these is no evidence these devices triggered, he claims, the pane must
have landed safely.
However due to the stormy conditions on the day, the craft
was swamped before disappearing below the waves, The Mirror reported.
In a fascinating, yet worrying, comment earlier in the week,
Mr Fernandes suggested that climate change was making weather worse and flying
riskier, particularly in the tropics.
Meanwhile today Mr Fernandes promised that he would fly with
the family of flight QZ8501 and the body of stewardess Ms Khairunnisa to her
home town in Palembang, Indonesia, once her body has been positively
identified.
The body of one of the two stewardesses, still in her red
AirAsia uniform, has been recovered.
In a Tweet today, Mr Fernandes said that ‘if our beautiful
and wonderful crew (member) is identified, we will go from Surabaya to
Palembang with her parents. Heartbreaking soul (destroyed).’
Ms Khairunnisa’s father, Mr Haidar Fauzie, told The Star
newspaper of Malaysia that he hoped the body found in a flight attendant’s
uniform was that of his daughter so that he could lay her to rest.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2893411/Stricken-AirAsia-plane-soared-fast-fighter-jet-dropped-vertically-Java-Sea-thrust-giant-hand-crash-experts-revealed-today.html#ixzz3NfKL1iH8
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