Indonesia Flight To Singapore Missing With 162 On Board

An AirAsia Indonesia airliner flying from Indonesia to Singapore with 162 people on board has lost contact with air traffic control.

Flight QZ8501 went missing at 07:24 (23:24 GMT), AirAsia tweeted.

The plane, an Airbus A320-200, disappeared midway into the flight of more than two hours and no distress call was issued, the BBC reports.

Indonesian military planes and aircraft from Singapore are searching an area of the Java Sea.

The flight left the Indonesian city of Surabaya in eastern Java at 05:20 local time (22:20 GMT) and was due to arrive in Singapore at 08:30 (00:30 GMT).

The missing jet had requested a “deviation” from the flight path due to bad weather, AirAsia said.

Indonesia’s transport ministry said the pilot had asked permission to climb to 38,000 ft (11,000m) to avoid thick cloud.

AirAsia, a budget airline which owns 49 per cent of AirAsia Indonesia, is based in Malaysia and has never lost a plane.

However, 2014 has been a difficult year for aviation in Asia: Malaysia’s national carrier Malaysia Airlines has suffered two losses – flights MH370 and MH17.

There were 155 passengers on board, the company said in a statement:

138 adults, 16 children and one infant.

Two pilots and five cabin crew were also on board.

Most on board were citizens of Indonesia.

Six were from other countries: three South Koreans and one French, Malaysian and Singaporean.

The United Kingdom Foreign Office has confirmed that one Briton was on board the flight, and next of kin had been informed.

AirAsia has set up an emergency line for family or friends of those who may be on board. The number is +622 129 850 801.

Dozens of passengers’ relatives have been gathering at Juanda airport in Surabaya and Singapore’s Changi airport to hear news.