Indonesian officials have said that debris sighted off Kalimantan coast is likely to be from missing AirAsia jet.

Flight QZ8501 went missing after air traffic controllers lost contact with the aircraft about 45 minutes after it left Juanda international airport at Surabaya in East Java at 5.20am on Sunday (22:20 GMT Saturday).

Shortly before disappearing, AirAsia said the pilot of the plane had asked permission from air traffic control to change course and climb above bad weather in an area noted for severe thunderstorms.

The search for the plane carrying 162 people, is now in its third day. Al Jazeera