A student from Melbourne’s Monash University is believed to be one of the passengers on the missing AirAsia flight.
According to a passenger list released by the Indonesian ministry of transport on Monday, Kevin Alexander Soetjipto was travelling on flight QZ8501 with his family when the aircraft went missing en route from Surabaya to Singapore.
Soetjipto, an Indonesian national from Malang in east Java, was due to graduate with a degree in finance in 2015, according to his LinkedIn profile.
Speaking for Monash University, Stacey Mair told AAP the institution was seeking official confirmation from the relevant authorities that Soetjipto was aboard the apparently doomed flight.
“We are deeply saddened to learn this news in relation to one of our valued student community,” she said, adding that counselling would be offered to Soetjipto’s friends and classmates.
Air traffic controllers lost contact with the AirAsia plane at 5:20am (Indonesian time) on Sunday. It is believed the flight crashed into the sea after encountering severe weather.
Australia is involved in the ongoing international search operation to find the missing plane.
The incident mirrors the loss of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 which went missing in March and is still yet to be found.
IMAGE: A member of the Indonesian Air Force looks out the window from a C-130 Hercules aircraft over the Java Sea during search and rescue operations for missing AirAsia flight QZ8501. The AirAsia Airbus plane with 162 people on board went missing en route from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore early on December 28, officials and the airline said, in the third major incident to affect a Malaysian carrier this year. (BAY ISMOYO/AFP/Getty Images)
