AirAsia Indonesia Flight QZ8501 To Singapore Is Missing
Aviation history in Southeast Asia has been heart-breaking this year. There is little information on the missing MH 370 and MH 17, both from Malaysian Airlines. AirAsia Flight 8501 went missing on Sunday, December 28, as it made a routine flight from Surbaya, Indonesia, to Singapore's acclaimed Changi Airport. According to Time, officials have suggested that the plane may have crashed into the Indian Ocean. Although possible wreckage has been spotted, nothing has yet been officially confirmed.
The search for the missing airline and its 162 passengers began on Monday. It was expanded on Tuesday – Asia time. While seven zones were unsuccessfully patrolled on Monday, the search has been fruitless so far. More nations have joined the search. According to CNN, France has dispatched two investigators to Indonesia, while China will send aircraft and ships to participate in the search. Singapore has sent a C-130 plane in addition to two more ships to the search area. Malaysia has deployed three vessels and three aircraft to help in the search. Finally, the Royal Australian Air Force has deployed a patrol plane to help.
The writers at Fox News observe that Flight 8501 vanished on Sunday morning in airspace thick with storm clouds. The last communication from the cockpit to air traffic control was an unusual request by one of the pilots to increase altitude from 32,000 feet to 38,000 feet due to stormy weather. Air traffic control did not immediately grant the request, as another plane was in the airspace. Bambang Tjahjono, director of the state-owned company in charge of air traffic control, told Fox News, "By the time clearance could be given, Flight 8501 had disappeared. The twin-engine, single-aisle plane, which never sent a distress signal, was last seen on radar four minutes after the last communication from the cockpit."
Weather may have been the cause of the missing flight. Large waves and clouds hindered the search over the last two days, leaving nothing but anxiety for relatives and loved ones. According to CNN, several dozen family members met with airline officials in a closed-door briefing on Monday. Many relatives took cell phone pictures of a flight posted on a wall. While there was a list of missing passengers, there has been no word on their fate.
Oei Endang Susilowati and his daughter have been searching for information on their missing loved ones, including his son's family. "We don't know what to do," Susilowati said. "We are just waiting for news."
AirAsia CEO Tony Fernandes said during a news conference in Surbaya, "Our concern right now is for the relatives and the next of kin. We don't want to speculate whether weather was a factor. We really don't know. Once the aircraft is found, there will be a proper investigation."
On board the Airbus A320-200, there were 155 Indonesians, three South Koreans, one British, one Malaysian, and one Singaporean. There were 18 children, including one infant. Seven of the people were crew members.
Featured Image: ABC News
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