The pilot of a doomed TransAsia plane,  was still holding the joystick in the plane's cockpit when his body was found, media reported on Friday.

Rescue workers said they found Liao Chien-tsung’s body in the cockpit still holding the joystick with both hands, and his legs badly fractured, the Taipei-based China Times newspaper said on Friday.

On February 4, the TransAsia ATR72-600 plane struck a road bridge shortly after take-off and plunged into Keelung River.

At least 35 people lost their lives in the accident. Fifteen people survived and rescuers are still searching the river and submerged wreckage for the other eight missing members.

Major newspapers ran front-page tributes on Friday, hailing Liao for saving lives as he apparently averted the turboprop plane from what could have been a disaster for civilians on the ground.

Taiwanese leaders and citizens also mourned the 41-year-old hero.

“He struggled to hold onto the joystick till the last moment before the plane plunged into the river, in an attempt to control its direction and to reduce casualties,” the newspaper added, citing unnamed prosecutors investigating the case.

Experts say TransAsia Airways faces possible sanctions over its second fatal accident in just seven months.