Tag: missing

Aviation experts said a range of causes could be responsible for the disappearance of AirAsia flight QZ8501, which had 162 people on board and which lost contact at 7.24am yesterday local time near Belitung island, Indonesia, but many pointed to the bad weather in the area and the fact that the plane’s crew had asked for a course and altitude change to avoid it.

The crew had requested to increase altitude to 38,000ft from 32,000ft to avoid clouds. Thunderstorms were reported in the area, with clouds up to 50,000ft, Indonesian officials said.

Flight-tracking website Flightradar24 said the jet was flying at the regular cruising altitude for most jetliners, 32,000ft, when the signal was lost. No distress reports came from the plane, officials said.

This was the third air incident this year for Malaysia, which lost two Malaysia Airlines jumbo jets, one of which mysteriously disappeared without a trace over the South China Sea, while the other was shot down over Ukraine.

“This aircraft has disappeared in a very similar fashion (to Malaysia Airlines flight 370 in March), but we have heard nothing about a Mayday call … so we don’t know at this moment what has happened,” said former airline pilot Desmond Ross in an interview with the BBC.

While there is no clear indication of what happened to the jet and what caused its disappearance, Mr Michael Palmer — lead forecaster at The Weather Channel — said there were numerous showers and hail throughout the Java Sea and the flight path. The large clusters of thunderstorms, some as tall as 50,000ft, would have forced a pilot to change course and the flight could have run into turbulence and hail, he said.

“We don’t know if it was the cause, but certainly, the weather was not calm,” Mr Palmer added.

Mechanical problems cannot be ruled out at this time, but the plane was said to be in good working order and had undergone its last scheduled maintenance on Nov 16.

Earth Networks, a company that tracks weather conditions across the globe, said it had recorded a number of lightning strikes near the path of flight QZ8501 yesterday between 6.09am and 6.20am Indonesian time. The last communication between the pilot and air traffic control was made at 6.13am local time, when the pilot asked to change course.

While it is rare for a lightning strike to cause serious structural damage that threatens the safety of an aircraft, it can disrupt navigation systems such as magnetic compasses. A lightning flash, particularly at night, can also momentarily disorient pilots.

The turbulence associated with a big storm can sometimes be severe and sudden shifts in wind direction could disrupt the airflow through a jet engine, potentially causing it to shut down.

However, a shutdown of all engines in such a scenario would be highly unlikely and the Airbus A320 is certified to fly up to three hours on a single engine, in compliance with global aviation safety regulations.

Source: www.todayonline.com

The search for the missing AirAsia QZ8501 has resumed on Monday morning (Dec 29).

“We have resumed the search for the missing AirAsia plane at 6am. We are heading to east Belitung island,” Tatang Zainuddin, deputy operations chief of Indonesia’s National Search and Rescue Agency (Basarnas), told AFP.

Five aircraft will be sent to search for the plane, including two C-130 military transport aircraft and a Boeing 737, Indonesian air force spokesman Hadi Cahyanto told AFP.

“Two planes have already left. Three more will follow suit. It is cloudy in some parts but still bright,” Cahyanto said. “We are focusing the search area in the waters on the eastern and northern part of Belitung island.”

Channel NewsAsia also understands that a second C-130 from the Republic of Singapore Air Force was deployed for search-and-locate operations before 7am Singapore time on Monday.

Singapore had offered two C-130 planes for search-and-locate operations, and the first of two planes left at around 4.32pm on Sunday. The first plane carried out the search for two hours before leaving at 8.30pm after Indonesian authorities called off the search for the night.

In addition, Singapore also sent RSS Supreme, a Formidable-class frigate, and the RSS Valour, a missile corvette, late on Sunday night to join the search efforts.

Indonesia’s search and rescue agency, Barsanas, said on Sunday that it had deployed seven ships and as many as 200 personnel to the search efforts.

Malaysia announced on Sunday that it was sending three navy ships and three aircraft to help in the search, while an Australian Air Force AP-3C Orion craft left Darwin to join the search operations Monday morning.

The missing AirAsia plane took off from Surabaya at 5.35am local time on Sunday, and was scheduled to land in Singapore at 8.30am Singapore time on Sunday. However, air traffic controllers lost contact with the plane at 7.24am Surabaya time. Singapore is an hour ahead of Surabaya.

There were 155 passengers on board, including 149 Indonesians. There were also six Indonesians and 1 French crew members, the budget airline revealed on Sunday.

Source: www.channelnewsasia.com

YOGYAKARTA – The pilot of missing Indonesia AirAsia flight QZ8501, Captain Iriyanto, is a very caring man who has never failed to help those in need, his nephew told local news media.

“He is always helping people because he is a very caring person. If there is a sick relative who needed help and even money, my uncle would be there,” the nephew, identified only as Doni, told Indonesian news portal Detik.com on Sunday.

“If there are money problems in the family, he would surely help,” said Doni, who lives in Surabaya.

Doni told Detik.com that Iriyanto is married with two school-going children. His wife does not have a job.

According to a media statement by AirAsia, Iriyanto had clocked 6,100 hours of flying time, while the French first officer, Remi Emmanual Plesel, had logged 2,275 hours.

Surabaya’s Surya Online reported that Mr Iriyanto was a member of Motor Besar Club (MBC), a motorcycle club.

“We had agreed to gather at Captain Irianto’s home to be with his family,” said Joko Bagus, the MBC club chief. “We ourselves have no idea what happened to the plane. But our hope is that all is well, and the plane lost its way but nothing bad happened to it.”

Source: www.straitstimes.com

A St Andrew’s Junior College (SAJC) student and his family were reportedly on board an Indonesia AirAsia plane that vanished on its way to Singapore from Surabaya, Indonesia, yesterday.

Indonesian Nico Giovanni, 18, who holds a Singapore Ministry of Education scholarship, had studied at Anglo-Chinese School (Independent) and recently completed his first year at the junior college.

“The college is in contact with Nico’s relatives and our thoughts and prayers are with them. We are also providing support to our students,” SAJC principal Mrs Lee Bee Yann told The Straits Times.

A friend, who wanted to be known only as Michael, said that Nico had come to Singapore to pursue his studies and was enrolled at the Secondary 3 level at ACS (I).

“Nico is very reserved. He is hard-working and respectful,” he said, adding that the Indonesian teen is good at maths and science.

The Straits Times understands that Nico was travelling with his parents and a brother. His sister, who was not with them, is believed to be waiting for her family at Changi Airport’s Terminal 2. Nico’s name is among those listed in a passenger manifest from the missing Indonesia AirAsia Flight QZ8501. The list was circulating online yesterday.

Separately, one of the passengers on board Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370, which vanished in March, happened to be an SAJC graduate.

Malaysian Tony Tan Wei Chew, 19, was on the way to Beijing for a vacation with his parents.

Source: www.straitstimes.com