Search teams find 12 bodies at crash site of Russian Sukhoi Superjet-100 jetliner in Indonesia

Relatives of the passengers of a Sukhoi Superjet-100 that crashed into a mountain in West Java, Indonesia, react to the news at Halim Perdanakusumah airport in Jakarta, Indonesia, May 11, 2012, that rescuers have found dead bodies. / AP Photo

(AP) MOUNT SALAK, Indonesia - Search teams who scaled a volcano's steep slopes found at least 12 bodies Friday near the wreckage of a Russian-made jetliner that crashed in Indonesia during a demonstration flight for potential buyers, an official said.

All 45 aboard the Sukhoi Superjet-100 that crashed Wednesday are feared dead.

"Today we have discovered 12 victims, all dead," Rear Marshal Daryatmo, head of the national search and rescue agency, told reporters Friday.

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Many of the bodies found Friday had been torn apart in the crash, said Lt. Col. Oni Juniato of the Indonesian marines, whose search team found eight corpses before returning to base camp further down the mountain.

"We see many other victims ... but the ravines and steep cliffs prevent us from reaching them," Junianto said in a statement.

Local television showed what appeared to be the plane's tail with the blue-and-white Sukhoi logo, part of a wing and bits of twisted metal scattered along the slope like confetti.

About 85 soldiers, police and volunteers used ropes to climb up to the wreckage through jungle on the near-vertical slopes of Mount Salak, search and rescue agency spokesman Gagah Prakoso said by telephone.

Thick fog and the mountain's jagged slopes kept helicopters from landing at the crash site, so the bodies remained there along with the search teams.

The soldiers, police and volunteers fashioned a landing area by hacking down trees, but Prakoso said the helicopters were recalled to Jakarta late Friday because the fog limited visibility to only about 15 feet.

The jetliner slammed into the dormant volcano at nearly 480 mph during drizzle. Russian and French investigators have joined the investigation into the cause.

The Superjet-100 is Russia's first new model of passenger jet since the fall of the Soviet Union two decades ago and was intended to help resurrect its aerospace industry.

The ill-fated Superjet was carrying representatives from local airlines and journalists on what was supposed to be a 50-minute demonstration flight. Just 21 minutes after takeoff from a Jakarta airfield, the Russian pilot and co-pilot asked for permission to drop from 10,000 feet to 6,000 feet. They gave no explanation, disappearing from the radar immediately afterward.

It was not clear why the crew asked to shift course, especially since they were so close to the 7,000-foot volcano, or whether they got an OK, officials have said.

Communication tapes will be reviewed as part of the investigation, but it's unlikely they will be released to the public any time soon.

[marcie10000]

Was TAWS turned off in order to sightsee? Would TAWS have even given enough warning, given the sheer cliff? Did the morning flight have a similar sight-seeing path? Did the clouds start forming around noon - in between flights? It was a top-notch crew and an amazing aircraft made in an international effort with the same high tech equipment seen in state-of-the-art aircraft. Sadly, volcano microclimates are not common in Russia. So sad and tragic.

[AnnieDanny]

Wow, photo of the volcano shows the terrain is about as difficult as it could possibly be. Straight up and down!

This is very tragic. I'm very sorry for the families. I will pray for them.