This story might sound familiar. However, as similar as it is to the missing Malaysian plane that disappeared in March of 2014, it is its own terrible tale.
AirAsia QZ8501 left Surabaya, Indonesia, Sunday night and was due to arrive in Singapore. Somewhere along the way, all contact with the plane was lost. After requesting permission to climb to 38,000 feet to avoid dense clouds, the plane disappeared from radar screens and has yet to be seen again. The pilots, who both boasted years of experience, appear to have contended with extremely bad weather.
AirAsia 8501 during an earlier flight.
Co-pilot of the missing plane Remi Emmanuel Plesel and Captain Iriyanto.
The flight path and search area for AirAsia 8501.
A relative checks to see if their loved one was on the plane.
The plane had 162 people on board, and AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes says the disappearance is his “worst nightmare.” Flight AirAsia 8501 is the third Asian commercial airplane to go down in 2014. In addition to the Malaysian MH370 flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing that disappeared in March, flight MH17 was shot down as it flew above Ukraine in July.
For more information on this missing plane, check out the video below.
(via BBC News)
What a heartbreaking tragedy. I don’t know what’s going on with commercial airlines these days, but hopefully we can figure out a better way to track these planes. Our thoughts go out to everyone on the plane, their loved ones, and all of the people who are working day and night to give this all a proper ending.