Clampdown follows rules breach on tragic airliner

The routing permits of all airlines flying in the country will also be examined to see if they are violating the rules, said Djoko Murjatmodjo, acting director general of air transportation. “Who knows if other airlines are also doing the same thing?” he said.

The crackdown comes as searchers continue to fight bad weather while combing the Java Sea for bodies and wreckage of the Airbus A320 that crashed on December 28, killing all 162 on board.

The plane was travelling between Surabaya, Indonesia’s second-largest city, and Singapore on a Sunday. Officials have since said its permit was only for Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday, and that AirAsia quietly switched three of those days. Officials in Singapore, however, have said the plane was authorised to fly on Sundays from its end.

While the airline is being investigated, Indonesia has banned all AirAsia flights between Surabaya and Singapore.

AirAsia Indonesia president director Sunu Widyatmoko said the airline will co-operate with the government during the evaluation, but would not comment on the permit allegations until the process is complete.

So far, 37 bodies have been recovered, including three more yesterday and sonar has identified five large pieces of what is believed to be chunks of the fuselage on the ocean floor.