AirAsia QZ8501: Search team suspends attempts to raise plane's fuselage

Following a series of failed attempts, the Indonesian rescue team has now suspended efforts to lift the fuselage of the AirAsia flight QZ8501 that crashed into the Jave Sea last month.

Indonesia's military chief, General Moeldoko, said that a decision to put a hold on the operation was taken after some divers were treated for decompression sickness, reported the BBC.

He added that the plane's fuselage was "too fragile to be lifted."

The team failed to raise the fuselage from the sea bed after three days of attempts using a lifting bag.

Officials initially thought that bodies were trapped inside the plane's body but they now noted that the wreckage was no longer a priority as they believed no victims were trapped inside it.

The team has recovered 70 bodies out of 162 so far. The operation has been impeded by harsh weather conditions.

AirAsia flight QZ8501 went down into the sea on December 28 while flying from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore.

A preliminary report on the crash is expected to be filed this week.