AFP

JAKARTA THE remains of 45 victims killed in a Russian plane crash in Indonesia have been identified, a police forensics official said on Monday, as experts probe why the plane slammed into a dormant volcano.

“We identified 45 victims comprising 35 Indonesians and 10 foreigners — eight Russian, one American and a Frenchman,” said national police forensics expert Anton Castilani.

“The identification process was completed on Sunday and we will hand over the victims’ remains and death notifications to their families on Wednesday morning,” he said.

Remains of the foreign victims will be handed over to their relatives or representatives in Indonesia, Castilani added.

The new Sukhoi Superjet 100 ploughed into Mount Salak, south of the capital Jakarta, on May 9 with the loss of all 45 passengers and crew on board.

Body parts were scattered across an area of dense forest and into a deep ravine, and were transported to Jakarta in 35 body bags.

Experts are investigating the plane’s cockpit voice recorder for clues as to why it crashed during a demonstration flight. The search continues for the plane’s other black box, the flight data recorder.

The promotional flight, aimed at touting the jet to new customers, was carrying mostly Indonesian airline officials.

There were also four flight crew members and four Sukhoi executives from Russia on board, as well as eight Indonesian cabin attendants, a US citizen and a French national.