Aussie planes return from AirAsia search

Two Australian defence aircraft are headed back home after helping Indonesia in the search for the doomed AirAsia flight QZ8501, which has now become a recovery mission.

Indonesian authorities have advised the two Australian aircraft are no longer required, the Australian Defence Force (ADF) says.

Flight QZ8501, an Airbus A320, went missing on Sunday morning while travelling from Surabaya in Indonesia to Singapore with 162 people aboard.

More than 48 hours later, aerial searches have found debris and bodies floating in the Java Sea.

Seven bodies have since been recovered.

A New Zealand Air Force P3 Orion had also been deployed to Indonesia to assist with the search, while the United States sent the warship USS Sampson.