The Boeing 737 flight JT 610 was carrying 181 passengers, including one child and two infants, as well as six crew members and two pilots, according to CNN.
The plane, bound for a nearby Indonesian island Pangkal Pinang, crashed into the sea 13 minutes after takeoff from Jakarta on Monday.
According to CNN, the SAR has deployed boats, helicopter and 130 rescuers to the vicinity of the crash site in the Java Sea.
Lion Air said the crashed aircraft was made in 2018 and has only been operated by the airline since 15 August this year.
The last major plane accident in Indonesia was in 2014 where the Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501 aircraft, operating the route from Surabaya to Singapore, crashed into the Java Sea during bad weather, killing all 155 passengers and seven crew on board.
MS/PR