Search resumes for missing Indonesian jetliner

POLEWALI, Indonesia -- Rescuers scoured the ocean for a missing jetliner on Wednesday, one day after senior Indonesian officials erroneously said the Boeing 737's charred wreckage had been found in a remote mountainous area, and that a dozen people may have survived.

Three navy ships set sail soon after sunrise in the Makkasar Strait and five Air Force planes took to the skies, searching for signs of wreckage, said Bambang Karnoyudho, the head of the National Search and Rescue Agency.

Karnoyudho said based on radar and satellite readings he thought it most likely that the Adam Air plane had fallen into the sea.

"God willing, we can find it soon," he said.

Visibility was good but there was no sign of the plane, said Air Force Squadron Commander Lt. Col. Mudjianto, whose team followed the plane's scheduled flight path to the site where its last distress signal was picked up.

The Oregonian newspaper on Tuesday reported that sisters Stephanie Jackson, 21, and Lindsey Jackson, 18, both from Bend, Ore., were traveling with their father, Scott Jackson, a 54-year-old wood-products industry representative who lives part time in Indonesia, Brazil and Oregon.

Felice Jackson DuBois said her daughters sent her an e-mail that said "Happy New Year" shortly before takeoff.

"Any time I hear that they're going on an airplane, yes, I'm scared," DuBois told The Oregonian. "But you can't live your life guided by your fears. You just want to hold out hope."

Just over half of the Adam Air's flight path was over the Java Sea, the Maluku Sea and other smaller bodies of water.

Adam Air is one of at least a dozen budget carriers that have emerged in the country since 1999, when the industry was deregulated. The rapid expansion has led to cheap flights to scores of destinations around the sprawling nation, but has raised some safety concerns, since maintenance on the leased planes is reportedly poor.

National aviation chief Ichsan Tatang said the plane involved in Monday's disaster was 17 years old, had flown 45,371 hours and passed its last inspection on Dec. 25.

Adam Air, which began operations in 2003, was founded by Agung Laksono, the speaker of Indonesia's house of representatives.