DGCA Issues Guidelines to Operators for Real Time Tracking of Aircrafts

07-May-2014 In view of the difficulties faced in search and rescue operations after an aircraft goes missing or meets with an accident, the DGCA has issued guidelines to all operators, in the form of Air Safety Circular, for real time tracking of aircrafts engaged in carrying passengers and cargo from departure to arrival . This is significant in view of the preliminary report released by Ministry of Transport, Malaysia into the accident of B777-200 aircraft 9M-MRO operating flight MH-370 on 8th March 2014, which has revealed that the location of wreckage is still unknown due to the fact that there is no real time tracking of the aircraft. It is now known that after Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) had stopped transmitting, the satellite communication system automatically transmitted seven messages that confirmed that the system was still logged onto the network.