The British Foreign Office is investigating a report that a Briton is on board an AirAsia plane which has gone missing on its way from Indonesia to Singapore.
The plane, which had 162 passengers and crew on board, lost contact with air traffic control around 7.30 am local time, AirAsia said.
AirAsia's chief executive is Tony Fernandes, who also owns Premier League football team Queens Park Rangers.
He retweeted a message from the airline confirming that Flight QZ8501 from Surabaya to Singapore had lost contact.
AirAsia said in a statement on its Facebook page: "At the present time we unfortunately have no further information regarding the status of the passengers and crew members on board, but we will keep all parties informed as more information becomes available.
"The aircraft was an Airbus A320-200 with the registration number PK-AXC.
"At this time, search and rescue operations are in progress and AirAsia is co-operating fully and assisting the rescue service."
Indonesia's MetroTV reports there were 149 Indonesians, 3 Koreans, 1 Singaporean, 1 Briton, and 1 Malaysian on board.
No Australians are believed to have been on board.
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