Iskandar Airport was one of the operation centres being used to support search operations following the crash of
AirAsia QZ 8501 on 28 December 2014 in nearby
Karimata Strait. Shortly after the crash, the
Indonesian National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS, or
Badan SAR Nasional) established a post in Iskandar airport to coordinate the search. The head of the agency, Air Marshal Bambang Sulistyo, took close personal command of operations. Following confirmation of the crash, Indonesian agencies prepared over 160 coffins in Pangkalan Bun to be ready, following Indonesian practice, to take care of those who died as quickly as possible. After a reception in Pangkalan Bun, the plan was to return the bodies of the people who died to their families, mostly in
Surabaya in
East Java where Flight QZ 8501 originated from. ==Geography==