The disappearance of AirAsia flight 8501 in the South China Seas, leaving no trace after its progress had been tracked for roughly an hour and forty-five minutes after it took off, poses problems of how an airplane could get lost in an age of global tracking of local position. Did lack of coordination of the congestion of the airspace, despite severe meteorological conditions in the same region, complicate air controllers' response? Tools of mapping by radar often unclearly render planes over the watery expanse. The apparent rejection of the plane's pilot request to rise some 6,000 feet in elevation made shortly before ground control lost contact with the plane raises compelling questions not only of what happened--but how travel will continue to be effectively monitored in a time of increased amount of "air traffic" across the Indonesian archipelago. Continue reading ![]()
