AirAsia QZ8501: Smoke spotted in search for missing plane

The search for missing AirAsia flight QZ8501 has entered a third day, with the search area widened to cover land and sea.

Indonesian officials say they are sending teams to investigate reports of smoke on an island in East Bilutung, inside the expanded search zone.

The Airbus A320-200, carrying one hundred and sixty-two people, disappeared last Sunday shortly after leaving Surabaya in eastern Java, Indonesia, on its way to Singapore.

Meanwhile, countries around the region as well as the US, France and Australia are joining the search over the Java sea.

The pilot's last contact was a request to divert around bad weather. Indonesian officials say air traffic control approved one request, and then gave clearance to a second request but no reply was received before the plane disappeared from radar. No trace has yet been found.

Source: BBC