AirAsia plane reported missing with 162 passengers onboard: latest
Briton understood to be among 162 people onboard AirAsia plane flying from Indonesia to Singapore which loses contact with air traffic control
5:44AM GMT 28 Dec 2014
• Plane lost contact with Jakarta's air traffic control at 7:24am
• Briton understood to be among missing passengers
• Plane had asked for unusual route before it lost contact
• Reports of some bad weather on the route
• Search and rescue launched to find aircraft
• Dominant low-cost carrier in Southeast Asia with good record
• Briton understood to be among missing passengers
• Plane had asked for unusual route before it lost contact
• Reports of some bad weather on the route
• Search and rescue launched to find aircraft
• Dominant low-cost carrier in Southeast Asia with good record
06.10 The search is intensifying with Singapore sending in two C130 planes to supplement the Indonesian teams in the area.
06.00 Reports suggest that search efforts are concentrating on an area between Belitung Island and Kalimantan on the western side of Borneo.
05.50 An Indonesian transport official said the flight went missing between Tanjung Pandan and Pontianak, West Kalimantan.
05.40 The pilot is understood to have had 6,100 hours of flying experience. But experts have warned that weather in the region, especially during the monsoon season, can be especially severe. He is understood to have asked to climb from 32,000 to 38,000 feet to avoid heavy clouds.
05.36 According to Air Asia there were 138 adults, 16 children and 1 infant on board the aircraft. The airline has set up an emergency call centre, the phone number is: +622129850801.
05.33 It has been reported that the pilot requested requested permission to fly at a higher altitude to avoid bad weather.
05.19 Families of those on board the aircraft have started arriving at Changi airport, Singapore, they have been ushered into a special holding area at Terminal 2.
05.12 We know 149 Indonesians, three people from Korea, and one each from Singapore, Britain and Malaysia were on board. Here's the breakdown:
05.10 Malaysia is the airline's country of registration under international law, so it looks like they could be leading another investigation into a missing passenger plane.
05.00 The flight was supposed to have landed four hours ago now, and a frantic search and rescue is currently underway. No news yet where the plane is. David Millward, the Telegraph's former tansport correspondent, has a little more on the airline in question:
AirAsia has an almost impeccable safety record and has never had a fatal accident in its history. One of its aircraft, again an airbus, did sustain serious damage after skidding off a runway on landing at Kuching Airport in Malaysia in January 2011.
The A320 is a short haul workhorse used around the world which entered service in 1988. According to the Flight Safety Foundation, there have been 26 “hull losses” - in which the plane was destroyed - in its 26 year history.
04.45 There were reports of some bad weather along the route QZ 8501 went missing.
04.38 Last reported position of the Airbus:
04.30 An AirAsia flight with 155 passengers and seven crew on board has been reported missing.
The aircraft, an Airbus A320-200, flight number number QZ 8501, was reported to have asked for an unusual route with air traffic control in Jakarta at 6.17 am local time.
It was en route from Surabaya, Indonesia, to Singapore. It is understood one Briton is on board the flight
According to the destination board at Singapore airport, the flight was reported as delayed.
A search and rescue operation was already underway.
"At the present time we unfortunately have no further information regarding the status of the passengers and crew members on board, but we will keep all parties informed as more information becomes available," the airline said in a statement.
The disappearance of the AirAsia flight comes less than 10 months after the disappearance of MH370, a Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
That aircraft has still not been found, despite a massive search of the Indian Ocean.
AirAsia, which is based in Malaysia, has emerged as a major low cost airline in the region.
It was bought by Tony Fernandes, the entrepreneur, who also owns Queens Park Rangers football club in London.
