The search and rescue (SAR) team has received an orange box, suspected as a black box of Indonesia's ill-fated Adam Air plane, which has been disappeared with 102 people aboard since Jan. 1 when it was on its way from Surabaya to Manado.
The box was found by Ridwan, 41, a fisherman in Somba Utara waters, Majene regency, South Sulawesi province, Antara news agency reported Sunday.
Pare Pare Police chief Sr. Comr. Gatot Hariyanto said that the box was handed over to the joint SAR team tasked to track the missing plane for further investigation by the Transportation Safety National Committee.
The box measuring 21 centimeters long, 6 centimeters width, and 4.5 centimeters high, is being kept in the SAR Command Post in Hasanuddin airport, South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar.
Air Force chief of staff Marshall Herman Prayitno said that the box found in Majene is like a plane black box, but he could not confirm that it came from Adam Air plane until the investigation completes.
SAR team has collected dozens of goods, which are suspected coming from Adam Air plane, but the team has not found the main body of the ill-fated aircraft as well as bodies of its passengers.
(Xinhua News Agency January 22, 2007)