Lion Air flight JT610 lost contact with ground officials 13 minutes after takeoff from Jakarta airport

An Indonesian plane carrying 189 people crashed into the sea and sank minutes after taking off from the capital, Jakarta.

The Lion Air flight, JT610, lost contact with ground officials 13 minutes after takeoff, Indonesia’s search and rescue agency said. The agency posted photos online showing a crushed smartphone, books, bags and parts of the aircraft fuselage which had been collected by search and rescue vessels.

Around 300 people, including soldiers, police and local fishermen were involved in the search – which has so far recovered body parts, ID cards, personal belongings and aircraft debris.

Lion Air said the brand-new Boeing 737, which was on a 1-hour-and-10-minute flight to Pangkal Pinang on an island chain off Sumatra, was carrying 181 passengers, including one child and two babies, and eight crew members.

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