AirAsia, whose plane has yet to be found after it disappeared from radar Sunday with 162 people on board, featured an unfortunate article in the April edition of the airline's in-flight magazine, which said "your plane will never get lost." AirAsia apologized for the article in April after some called it insensitive considering the piece was published less than a month after Malaysia Airlines Flight 360 disappeared with 239 people on board.
"With deep regret and remorse I would like to sincerely apologize for any offense caused by the Pilot's Perspective article in the latest issue of Travel 3Sixty magazine," AirAsia Executive Chairman Datuk Kamarudin Meranun said at the time, adding that the publication is prepared "months in advance." The issue was pulled from all of AirAsia's flights after the controversy.
AirAsia Indonesia Flight QZ8501 lost contact with air traffic controllers Sunday morning local time (Saturday night ET) during a flight from Indonesia to Singapore. Indonesia, Australia, Singapore and Malaysia are involved in the search, which is entering its third day. The plane is thought to be in a shallow part of the Java Sea, but experts said tidal currents can make the search extremely challenging, nonetheless. Some of AirAsia's planes had been outfitted with Inmarsat satellite communications systems, which provide location updates every two minutes, The Wall Street Journal reported. But the missing A320-200 had not yet received the upgrade, Katie Potts, a press officer at Inmarsat told NBC News.
IN-DEPTH
- AirAsia: Shallow Seas Don't Mean an Easy Search
- Missing AirAsia Flight Likely on 'Bottom of the Sea,' Search Official Says
- AirAsia Apologizes for Article Saying They Would Never Lose a Plane
SOCIAL
— Elisha Fieldstadt