BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Dec. 30 -- Brunei's Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah has sent a message of condolences to President of Indonesia Joko Widodo over the missing AirAsia Flight QZ8501, the state-run Ridio and Television Brunei (RTB) reported Tuesday.

In the message, the Sultan expressed his deep sadness at hearing of the news of the missing flight. The Sultan as well as his government and the people of Brunei Darussalam prayed to Allah Subhanahu Wata'ala that all efforts to locate the missing aircraft and its passengers would be successful. The Sultan hoped that President Joko Widodo and all the people of Indonesia particularly the families of the victims involved would be able to face this tragedy with patience and fortitude.

The AirAsia passenger plane with 162 people aboard lost contact with ground control on Sunday after departing from Surabaya in Indonesia en route to Singapore.