\u201cThe new system can also provide more regular updates on a plane\u2019s location\u201d
\nMalaysia Airlines has become the first carrier to sign up to a new satellite flight tracking system for its fleet. It comes three years after its MH370 flight bound for Beijing disappeared with 239 people on board.
\nUsing a soon-to-be-launched satellite network, the airline will be able to monitor its planes in areas where there is currently no surveillance.
\nThey include Polar Regions and remote areas of oceans not covered by existing systems.
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\nThe airline reached a deal for the service provided by US-based Aireon, FlightAware and SITAONAIR.
\nThe new system can also provide more regular updates on a plane\u2019s location, especially when travelling over oceans and other remote areas, said SITAONAIR\u2019s portfolio director Paul Gibson.
\nAircrafts deviating from a flight path could be identified more quickly as a result, he said.
\n\u201cWith access to up-to-the-minute reporting, Malaysia Airlines will know the location, heading, speed and altitude of all aircraft in its fleet, at all times, and be alerted to any exceptions.\u201d
\nBut it is unclear if the additional tracking ability would have had any impact on the MH370 disappearance.
\nAll tracking systems monitor a plane\u2019s location using its on-board transmitter. When the Kuala Lumpur-Beijing flight vanished in March 2014, the transmitter signal was lost, with some suspicions it was done deliberately.
\nMost flights currently transmit their position using signals tracked from both the ground and space.
\nThe new service, available in 2018, will add to that coverage, using the Iridium NEXT satellite constellation which was launched earlier this year.
\nThe fate of MH370 remains one of the world\u2019s greatest aviation mystery. More than 120,000 sq km (46,300 miles) of the Indian Ocean has been searched with no sign of the aircraft.
\nSome pieces of debris have been found on African islands including Madagascar.
\nThe deep-water search for the flight was called off earlier this year.
\nMalaysian Airlines has been trying to win back customers\u2019 confidence, by offering travel discounts and flight promotions.
\nThe carrier\u2019s chief operating officer, Izham Ismail, said the firm was \u201cproud\u201d to be the first airline to sign up for the system.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cThe new system can also provide more regular updates on a plane\u2019s location\u201d Malaysia Airlines has become the first carrier to sign up to a new satellite flight tracking system for its fleet. It comes three years after its MH370 flight bound for Beijing disappeared with 239 people on board. Using a soon-to-be-launched satellite network, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16386","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n