SINGAPORE - A Republic of Singapore Navy ship has found the main wreckage of the AirAsia plane that crashed in the Java Sea two weeks ago.
Defence Minister Ng Eng Hen said in a Facebook post on Wednesday that the Remotely Operated Vehicle of RSN ship, MV Swift Resue, took photos that showed the wing and a portion of the fuselage which had words on it.
Dr Ng said that Singapore has informed Basarnas, the Indonesian search authority, so it can begin to recover the missing parts of Flight QZ8501.
"The accident is a tragic event resulting in the loss of many lives. I hope that with the fuselage located, some form of closure can come to the families of the victims to ease their grief," said Dr Ng.
He also thanked all the Singapore Armed Forces servicemen who were part of the multinational search party for QZ8501.
Dr Ng then posted a video two hours later detailing his conversation with SLTC Chow Khim Chong, the Commander Task Group for underwater search operations on board the MV Swift Rescue.
The SAF has deployed more than 400 personnel, two RSAF C-130 aircraft, two Super Puma helicopters, five navy ships and a six-man Autonomous Underwater Vehicle team in the operation.
AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes reacted to the news on his Twitter account, saying he was "gutted and devastated" at seeing the aircraft.
