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MOUNT SALAK, Indonesia (AP) – Search teams found at least 12 bodies Friday on the steep slope of an Indonesian volcano where a Russian-made jetliner crashed while demonstrating the plane for potential buyers from airlines, an official said.
By Romeo Gacad, AFP/Getty ImagesIndonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and First Lady Ani Yudhoyono greet relatives of missing passengers of the ill-fated Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 at Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Friday.
By Romeo Gacad, AFP/Getty ImagesIndonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and First Lady Ani Yudhoyono greet relatives of missing passengers of the ill-fated Russian Sukhoi Superjet 100 at Halim Perdanakusuma airport in Jakarta, Indonesia, on Friday.
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.The search team 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 jagged mountain's slopes are still keeping helicopters from landing, so the bodies remain at the crash site, said Daryatmo. He added that the soldiers, police and volunteers on the rescue team were cutting down trees to fashion a landing area for helicopters.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.The jetliner slammed into the dormant volcano at nearly 800 kph (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 (3,000 meters to 1,800 meters). 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 (2,200-meter) 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.Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.For more information about reprints & permissions, visit our FAQ's. To report corrections and clarifications, contact Standards Editor Brent Jones. For publication consideration in the newspaper, send comments to letters@usatoday.com. Include name, phone number, city and state for verification. To view our corrections, go to corrections.usatoday.com.
