May 2 – The Malaysian government on Thursday recommended the introduction of a standard procedure for real-time tracking of commercial airliners even as the families of passengers on board the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which went missing in March, were advised to receive information about the aircraft at their homes.
“It is recommended that the International Civil Aviation Organisation examine the safety benefits of introducing a standard for real-time tracking of commercial air transport aircraft,” the Malaysian transport ministry said in a preliminary report on the investigation into the ill-fated passenger jet.
“While commercial air transport aircrafts spend considerable time operating over remote areas, there is currently no requirement for real-time tracking of these aircrafts,” the report said. “There have now been two occasions during the last five years when large commercial air transport aircraft have gone missing and their last position was not accurately known.”
Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished mysteriously about an hour after taking off for Beijing from Kuala Lumpur shortly after the midnight of March 8. The Boeing 777-200ER was scheduled to land in Beijing the same morning. The 227 passengers on board included five Indians, 154 Chinese and 38 Malaysians.
Thursday’s report gave a detailed timeline of the events that unfolded that fateful night, the steps taken by the authorities to track down the aircraft, and the multinational search effort that followed and is now continuing in the southern Indian Ocean off the west coast of Australia.
Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines chief executive officer (CEO) Ahmad Jauhari Yahya, in a statement issued on Thursday, said the kin of those who went missing with the flight have been advised to receive information at their homes as the search and investigation would be a prolonged process and advanced compensation payments would be made.
“Instead of staying in hotels, the families of the victims are advised to receive information at their own homes,” Chinese news agency Xinhua quoted the statement as saying.
It also said that all of the company’s family assistance centres around the world would be closed by May 7, 2014. “With the support of the Malaysian government, the airline’s family support centres will be established in Kuala Lumpur and in Beijing,” it said, adding that a detailed plan of follow-up support and services would be informed to the families in person.
Moreover, the statement said Malaysia Airlines would make advanced compensation payments to the nominated next-of-kin who are entitled to claim compensation.
-INDIA TODAY
