An Indonesian search and rescue agency official predicted there would be no survivors from the Lion Air plane that crashed into the sea north of Java Island on Monday.
"We need to find the main wreckage," Bambang Suryo, operational director of the agency, told reporters.
"I predict there are no survivors, based on body parts found so far."
Indonesian rescuers have found passengers' belongings and debris, but are yet to locate the main body of the plane. Source: EPA
Indonesia's transport ministry has confirmed 188 people were on board flight JT-610 when it took off from Jakarta's Soekarno-Hatta International Airport at 6.21am local time on Monday.
President Joko Widodo told a news conference authorities were focusing on the search and rescue, and he called for the country's prayers and support.
Distressed relatives of passengers on board Lion Air JT610 met at the crisis centre in Jakarta's airport seeking more information about their loved ones.
Other family and friends gathered at the house of a passenger on board the ill-fated Lion Air flight as search and rescue teams tried to retrieve the wreckage of the aircraft.
At least 23 government officials, four employees of state tin miner PT Timah and three employees of a Timah subsidiary, were on the plane.
A Lion Air official said one Italian passenger and one Indian pilot were on board.
Indonesian relatives of the plane crash victims cry as they wait for the news at the airport in Pangkal Pinang, Indonesia. Source: AAP
An official of Indonesia's safety transport committee said he could not confirm the cause of the crash, which would have to wait until the recovery of the plane's black boxes.
Sindu Rahayu, directorate general of Civil Aviation at the transport ministry, said the aircraft was carrying 178 adult passengers, one child and two babies, with two pilots and five flight attendants.
"The plane had requested to return to base before finally disappearing from the radar," he added in a statement.
"We don't know yet whether there are any survivors," agency head Muhmmad Syaugi told a news conference, adding that no distress signal had been received from the aircraft's emergency transmitter.
"We hope, we pray, but we cannot confirm."
He said that items such as headphones and life vests were found in waters about 30 metres deep near where the plane lost contact.
"We are there already, our vessels, our helicopter is hovering above the waters, to assist," Syaugi said. "We are trying to dive down to find the wreck."
A relative of passengers prays as she and others wait for news on the Lion Air plane that crashed off Java Island. Source: AAP
"We don't dare to say what the facts are, or are not, yet," Edward Sirait, the chief executive of Lion Air Group, told Reuters. "We are also confused about the why, since it was a new plane."
The Indonesian finance ministry said around 20 of its employees were on the plane.
Among them were half a dozen colleagues of Sony Setiawan, who was supposed to be on the flight but missed check in due to bad traffic.
"I know my friends were on that flight," he told AFP.
Setiawan said he was only informed about his lucky escape after he arrived in Pangkal Pinang on another flight at 9:40am.
"My family was in shock and my mother cried, but I told them I was safe, so I just have to be grateful."
A Department of Foreign Affairs spokesperson said it was still determining if any Australians were on board.
"The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is aware of reports of the missing Lion Air aircraft in Indonesia. The Australian Embassy in Jakarta is making urgent enquiries with local authorities to determine if any Australians were affected," a spokesperson said.
Following the crash, Australia's Smart Traveller website advised that Australian government officials and contractors have been instructed not to fly on Lion Air.
The Lion Air chief told reporters the plane had experienced a technical problem on a previous flight, but it had been resolved according to procedure.
"This plane previously flew from Denpasar to Cengkareng (Jakarta). There was a report of a technical issue which had been resolved according to procedure," Edward Sirait said, declining to specify the nature of the technical issue.
The plane took off from Jakarta airport and crashed 13 minutes later. Source: SBS News
In a statement, the privately owned airline said the aircraft, which had only been operated since August, was airworthy, with its pilot and co-pilot together having accumulated 11,000 hours of flying time.
“It has been confirmed that it has crashed,” Yusuf Latif, a spokesman for the National Search and Rescue Agency, said by text message.
The website tracked the plane, showing it looping south on take-off and then heading north before the flight path ended abruptly over the Java Sea, not far from the coast.
