JAKARTA, January 29 – The National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas) will still continue its search for the remaining 92 victims of the ill-fated AirAsia flight, according to Basarnas Chief Vice Marshal F.H. Bambang Soelistyo.
“The withdrawal of military personnel does not mean that the search and rescue operation has been shut down,” Soelistyo said in a press statement at the Basarnas central office here on Wednesday.
Indonesia’s Antara news agency reported him as saying that the military personnel had played their role in accordance with the initial plan to successfully discover and retrieve 17 bodies of the victims.
“But, as no more victims were discovered in the past two days, the TNI (Indonesian Military) withdrew its personnel from the search area,” the Basarnas chief remarked.
He further noted that the search operation will still continue.
The survey ship is still trying to find new search sites as the extension of the search operation depends on the dynamics on the field.
– BERNAMA
