KC Sim

AJ should not tender his resignation now ... as much as I can understand the immense stress that he is going through and as much as I can imagine some folks are putting pressure on him to resign ... he should only consider resigning only after this entire search and subsequent investigation is finished. And it may turn out there is absolutely no reason for him to resign at all and that he is much needed to grab hold of all the lessons learnt to take MAS forward. Resigning now is tantamount to giving those bashing MAS and Malaysia the ammunition they need to say that he is shirking responsibilities. Sure, the handling of this crisis is not perfect ... but show me a crisis management that is. There will always be something that can be better handled and there are lessons that can be learnt from it, but one has to stay on for the lessons to be of value to the organization. So I hope this talk about AJ's resignation is merely a cruel rumour. MAS' CEO should learn on small lesson from the other AJ (from Qantas) who should but absolutely refused to resign. KC Sim

On another ordinary day ... such a diversion would absolutely not be news-worthy at all ... and on a slow news day, it would at most warrant a little blurp of no more than 50 words tucked away in a corner of your newspaper next to some advertisement selling instant 3-in-1 coffee mix. Sadly, much of the mainstream media - once driven by the adrenalin from an accident - become blood-thirsty and prey on even the smallest deviation from regular operation and begin to blow it out of all proportion. These journalists on a regular day would be reporting on sedate parliament sittings and mindless debates, morbid murders and gruesome gangrapes ... or griping about food prices and pollution from illegal slash and burn activities in oil palm plantations. And now that MH370 turned them into aviation monsters (yes, they become these since they learnt how to pronounce big words like "transponders" and "ACARS" and "Doppler shift"), they home in on anything remotely linked to aviation and turn these into breaking news. We just have to learn to laugh at this form of journalism and ignore such reports. During any press events, you quickly spot such journalists as they pressure themselves to be among the small handful that do ask questions ... and in the process, they ask the most stupid questions that cause many of their fellow journalists to roll their eyes so far back and down they could see their own rectums. KC Sim

Actually, southeast Asian nations could consider pooling certain non-tactical resources instead of having their own. Transport planes, tankers and perhaps even trainers could be acquired in larger numbers, maintained in one place and placed at the disposal of the participating air forces. That way, all enjoy economies of scale (both during the acquisition process and resulting in lower prices per unit and also during maintenance) and possibly closer relationship and better understanding during crisis. Frankly, there is no need to be suspicious of one another ... our people and our economies are so intertwined for us to consider going to war with one another and any threat to this region comes from terrorism or from hungry powers from outside (the latter is also quite unlikely). Currently, I am certain that Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia knows exactly what everyone has where ... I therefore agree in essence with what Waiping said about "engaging" the Singaporeans but prefer to widen it to a bigger pool of nations to ease any suspicion some may have and enjoy greater economies of scale. My thoughts perhaps make me a dreamer ... but it was nice as I was dreaming it. RSAF too has its very elderly C-130 tankers and slightly less elderly KC-135s ... and it would be nice to see the sleek shape of the A330MRTT gracing our skies over Changi ... but I will surely miss the KC-135s. It is always a reminder how much I love the B707s/B720s that I saw in my days as a kid - MSA, Air India, MAS, SIA, British Airtours, China Airlines, Air Ceylon, Jugoslovenski Aerotransport - JAT, PIA, Biman, Tarom, Cathay Pacific and later, even Air Zimbabwe, Swazi Air Cargo. Back to reality, I hope that in the aftermath of this crisis relating to MH370, the air forces and navies in the region engage one another in joint SAR exercises. Let not the 239 souls onboard MH370 perish in vain. KC Sim

Agree with flee ... saying the published transcript was inaccurate but yet not producing the official version is hard to gain credibility. The SMS last night was as I understand a final ditch effort to ensure that those not contactable face to face or on the phone could still get the information before the PM goes on the television at 10pm. I agree that the SMS is impersonal and under normal circumstances, inappropriate. But knowing the circumstances under which it was used, I actually applaud them for leaving it to the final option. Not doing so would be even worse if family members felt they learnt of the latest development from the television screen. KC Sim

Although the PM did not say MH370 crashed into the sea, the MAS statement did mention that none of the plane's passengers and crew survived. Or have I been mistaken? In any case, given the position (albeit estimated by Immarsat) of the final ping ... there is no land in sight even if the plane had flown for another 59 mins. It is therefore inconceivable that the plane could have landed somewhere. A ditching in that kind of sea condition is unthinkable and even if a successful ditching had been accomplished, it would not have stayed afloat for long, certainly not for 18 days. I sympathise with those having to break this kind of news, a case of damn if you do and damn if you don't. At today's press conference, both the Chairman and CEO of Malaysia Airlines seemed genuinely sad and the CEO at some stage seem to be fighting to stay composed. A pity too many of the media kept asking questions that will have no answers until some form of debris, the aircraft or the black box are found. After 18 days, some media folks just don't learn. And two of them asked what chance of survival for the passengers / crew if the aircraft did come down in that area ... duh? The waves are so high and the winds are so strong (not to mention the temperatures) ... if the HMS Success has to be taken out of the area due to weather, what do they think is the human survival chance? KC Sim

Now that the fate of MH370 and the 239 souls on board has been confirmed, it leaves us to pray for the families and relatives of MH370's crew and passengers. Let's not speculate what happened ... because none of us could possibly know. Sure, someone might just hit the mark but many will miss. And with social media going viral tonight, who know if something speculated anywhere could get to the families and relatives. Let's hope that somehow the wreckage of 9M-MRO will be recovered with some of its passengers and crew ... that way, at least some families could have a more complete closure. There will be many lessons for Malaysia and the rest of the world ... and I hope that this tragedy will result in governments in our region becoming more open to sharing and consulting with one another as soon as a tragedy occurs. This way, all can benefit from broader wisdom, shared resources and collective strength. This is perhaps one way to honour all those who perish in the crash of MH370. I extend my condolence to all in Malaysianwings ... as I know many of you have pained over this tragedy too. Tonight, I bid my own private farewell to 9M-MRO which flew me from KUL to TPE and LAX last year. KC Sim

Indeed mass communications students should be watching the press conferences to see how those fronting it could be better prepared, could be more careful in their choice of words, in handling planned and unforeseen situations (when relatives of Chinese passengers barged into the conference) ... not just observe what to do but also what not to do or say. A lot of time was wasted today by journalists who asked the same question as the journalist before them ... they kept wasting time about the technologies needed to find the black boxes when the plane has not even been found, let alone understanding the environment and the kind of technology needed. Siva Govindasamy of Reuters asked about the phone call made by the co-pilot just before departure ... not sure I got the answer but I would have gathered that is one easy investigation for the Telco people. It was mentioned that there are only two P-8 Poseidons in the world ... not true because I have already seen for myself two of these being delivered to the Indian Navy ... and the US Navy certainly has more than two also. The one great question I noted was the journalist asking why inflight refueling was not used to extend the loiter time that the aircraft participating in the search along the corridor has. Right now, given the distance from PER, each plane has only about two hours of loiter time to conduct the search. Funnily, Australia has the A330MRTT in its inventory and could easily have used these assets. KC Sim

Yes indeed ... the whole world is rooting for you Romeo Oscar. Reach out to those planes and ships searching for you ... those 239 people on board need to be reunited with their loved ones in one way or another. The world needs to know what really happened ... just so that there is no repeat of such an event. Keeping my fingers crossed ... and praying also for favourable weather until this search accomplishes its desired results. KC Sim

If anyone is keen to find out the location of Malaysia's military installations, don't you think there are more discreet methods than posing questions in a press conference?? China as you see could immediately train 10 high resolution satellites to look into this small area!! Other nations have highly equipped AEW airplanes that could already see everything. In the same way, I am certain Malaysia knows where all its neighbours' military hardware are located. KC Sim

From the latest press conference this afternoon, I think I learnt one thing: When the military mentioned that there was a contact detected turning back from where the B777 was ... and that contact may have flown to an area in the northern end of the Straits of Malacca ... I hear the good gentleman cautiously mentioning that "from the recording ... ". It does not appear like anyone was looking at the radar at the time that contact turned back and flew across the northern part of the Peninsula towards the Straits of Malacca and the Andaman Sea. The military only went back to the recording some time later and attempt to make sense of what they see. Is that correct? A question was asked why fighters were not scrambled since an "unidentified flying object" was detected ... but the answer given became lost in a lot of mumbo jumbo about not being sure if it was even the B777. KC Sim

I think the need for some family members to transfer at Hong Kong is due to the fact that not all the Chinese passengers are from Beijing ... but are actually from less well connected parts of China where there are no direct flights to KUL. KC Sim

The fishermen were able to tie the life raft to their boats to prevent it from sinking ... but the MMEA lost it as it sank to the bottom when they were trying to load it onto their vessel. What an irony! Hope the MMEA retrieves it and let experts have their take on it. There is a story circulating on the internet pointing to relatives of passengers from MH370 being wrongly sent to India while transiting Hong Kong ... it sounds ridiculous and does anyone know if this is true. I personally hope this is again one more of a long string of untruths in cyberspace. KC Sim

I am surprised by all these he said, she said, they said, I did not say ... every single press conference is thoroughly covered by the media and certainly they are recorded by many parties including Malaysia Airlines and the DCA and other government bodies. Perhaps it is time to collate recordings of each and every single one ... do a transcript of them including translation for questions asked in Malay (and answered similarly. This way, there will be no need to say he said I said what I say I did not say. KC Sim

This morning's press conference at 1000 hrs is pre-empted by expectation that the identity of one of the two passengers travelling on stolen passports may be revealed ... and perhaps cctv footages shown. For me, I am hoping that the large pieces of debris seen yesterday (off Vung Tau) by an airplane flying out of Hong Kong could be seen today by search planes out of Vietnam this morning ... and by the time of the press conference, perhaps there will be early indications if these debris are indeed from MH370. Let us hope that the expanded search areas yield results soon ... in the meantime, we have to really be patient. If we are sometimes feeling frustrated by what we perceive to be slow progress, can we imagine what families and relatives (and friends) of those onboard feel. Let's channel our frustration into prayers for those onboard and those awaiting news of their fate. I too applaud Suzanne Goh for consciously wanting to continue supporting MAS. It needs your support now more than ever. KC Sim

As members of Malaysianwings gather to mark this community's 9th anniversary in Kuala Lumpur ... the day's spotting should begin with a minute's silence to honour the crew and passengers of MH370. Whatever lands during that minute should be ignored and the silent tribute should prevail. I hope to join you in this gathering. KC Sim

It is very sad to read hanseel's account of his dad's flight to Brisbane ... and of how the cabin crew members felt. I absolutely could not imagine how the cabin crew onboard MH370 24 hours after the ill-fated flight were able to find enough strength to do their work and serve the passengers. I mentally pieced together a picture of apprehension preparing to go to the airport, checking in, going to the gate and actually boarding 9M-MRQ (noting the very close resemblance between the letter "O" and "Q") and preparing for the flight. What was it like when passengers began boarding and they have to put on a smile, welcome them onboard ... I imagine the apprehension (and certainly there were prayers) when the plane commenced its take-off ... and for the pilots, what were they feeling when the plane flew over where news report mentioned was the likely point the previous day's flight disappeared ... how did the cabin crew members find the strength to serve the meals in the way they know so well, knowing that this is about the time when their colleagues met their destiny the day before ... I picture the relief they feel after the plane landed at Beijing Capital Airport but I also picture they mayhem they get when they step into the arrival hall - facing the barrage of media people who cared not about how the crew (both tech and cabin crew members) felt but just wanted to get a soundbite to show their bosses that they did their work ... and worst of all, they might even have to face the fury of some of the families and relatives of the passengers lost on the previous day ... and conceivably, even get unkind remarks from the general public taking pot shots at them because they wear the uniform of the airline being featured on television round the clock. I salute their professionalism for being able to do all their work in spite of the fact that many of them are personally grieving over the loss of friends and colleagues (not to mention family and relatives if any of the crew had these travelling on the previous day's flight). And if some of them suffered any emotional moments during the course of their work, it is totally understandable and I hope that colleagues rally around them to reassure them that all is well. The airline is always quick to assemble team of caregivers to extend a support system to the grieving families and relatives of passengers ... I hope that the union and the airline management does not neglect to provide similar support for crew members (and subsequently, the staff who volunteered to be caregivers for passengers' families and relatives ... I have friends who volunteered when SIA's SQ6 crashed and again for MI185 ... they suffered tremendously and faced much verbal and even physical abuse ... and they took on the grief of those they cared for). And so as we see, handling an accident such as this is a highly complex process ... and so let's be more patient than we want to be ... and be mindful of the feelings of those right in the epi-centre of it all. My prayers to all the crew/passengers and their families and relatives ... and my prayers also for the staff of Malaysia Airlines. KC Sim

I woke up just to get onto flightradar24 ... just to see MH370/9Mar 9M-MRQ landing safely at Beijing Capital Airport. This must have been one of the most difficult flights for the entire crew. How do they continue to provide the smiles when they themselves are reminded of the fate of all on the same flight 24 hours earlier ... and the crew are themselves mourning and grieving over the loss of colleagues and friends. At the arrival hall of Beijing Capital Airport, I can imagine them being harassed by the media and perhaps even by people who are unhappy with what they perceived to be a lack of information coming from the airline. For once, perhaps the airline should allow them to change into their own clothes before disembarking from the plane. My heart goes out to them. Having two persons travelling on passports stolen from Thailand and both have booked their flights from China with China Southern Airlines is too much of a coincidence for comfort. Hopefully there are CCTV recordings of them as they proceeded from the check-in at KLIA to the gate ... just so the authorities can see whether they really looked Italian/Austrian at all. Hopefully there is even a footage showing them before and during check-in ... so one could see the checked luggage they travel with. I know this does not change anything but it could prove to be valuable lessons for the folks tasked with security and safety of civil aviation. KC Sim

Please do not post the Passenger Name List here or anywhere until the airline has officially released it to the media. Airlines will normally only do this when it has contacted every passenger's and crew member's next of kin. This respect the feelings of the people who have lost someone who is close and dear to them. It is their needs and feelings that are most important ... not our hunger for information. KC Sim

This is not a time to bash MAS or the management or the government or anyone working for MAS. This is a time to bow one's head in memory of those who may have lost their lives ... and to extend our sympathies and condolences to those grieving the loss of their loved ones and friends. This is a time to reach out to our friends in MAS and to our friends in Malaysia ... to let them know that we share their pains and their deep sense of loss. I had the opportunity to fly twice last year on board MAS' B777-200ERs enroute from Kuala Lumpur to Los Angeles via Taipei ... and the second of these flights was operated by the ill-fated 9M-MRO. As far as those experiences go, those B777s were as sound as any I have flown at other times with other carriers. Let wait for investigations to proceed and establish the cause(s) of this accident ... till then, let us not venture to pin the blame on any party. A sad day for all and here in Singapore, we feel really close to all the grief felt by our dear friends in Malaysia. KC Sim

Is there somewhere to watch it online ... live? Otherwise we need someone to update us here ... especially if the news is indeed good and the plane has landed safely in Nanning. KC Sim

Finger crossed for the safety of this flight and all its crew members and passengers. KC Sim

It is highly debatable whether the strategic alliance with Emirates has brought any benefit to Qantas ... or has it let the wolf into the chicken coop instead. Notice that nothing said in recent times about Qantas' woes made any mention of Emirates ... very conveniently left out because perhaps it is another hot potato that could prove too hot to handle. Certainly the A380 is not considered a mistake ... if the airline is able to strike a good balance between load factor and yield. Could the premium cabin in Qantas' A380 be filled by staff (who are using their entitlement to travel in J or F Class) ... leaving too few seats to sell to commercial passengers? Whatever the case may be, it is surprisingly that Qantas has still not tried to make right what was previously done wrongly ... ie. acquire the best version of the B777 and dump the least productive aircraft type(s) in its fleet. KC Sim

Long-haul or even medium haul on widebody aircraft is the only way it is bearable. I have flown twice on the Singapore-Taipei-Narita route operated by Scoot's B772 and found it to be very pleasant indeed. I just cannot imagine doing a Singapore-Japan trip on Jetstar Asia's A320 ... on a narrow body in LCC configuration, I think three hours is about the limit. And so until Jetstar Asia introduces a widebody aircraft such as the B787-8 ... I won't be looking at their ads. KC Sim

Yesterday (27 Feb), Batik Air had a press conference in Singapore and announced that CGK-KUL flights will begin either Feb or Mar 2015. It also plans to launch Batam-Hong Kong flights (as part of its Batam hub initiative). Also being planned are Denpasar-Perth and Denpasar-Brisbane flights. CGK-SIN flights will begin in November or December 2014. Six A320s and four B737-800s will join the fleet starting July 2014. KC Sim

The last time AirAsia "helped" MAS ... it helped itself to the right to operate the Kuala Lumpur-Sydney route. It is one thing running an LCC but quite another running a full service carrier with all the warts and legacy problems. Over-staffing and financial management are just two of the airline's problems ... trying to compete with the more modern and fuel efficient planes of competitors using fuel-guzzling planes that have become obsolete is suicidal. Up to this point, MAS has not yet properly addressed this problem. What's said in the past was "we did not order this plane because there aren't delivery slots in the time frame we need" ... but if you do not begin to order, you will never have any delivery slots. Even airlines such as Pakistan International Airlines and Biman Bangladesh Airlines have been better at fleet renewal. They have been operating the B777-300ER for some time ... many will agree that this would have made a far better replacement for the B744s than the ego-boosting and much-too-big Airbus A380. The only way for MAS to turn-around is to set aside its chest-thumping ego, to stop worrying about prestige and 5-star billing, to swallow the bitter pill and do what Japan Airlines has done. Perhaps it should engage fellow oneworld partner JAL as a consultant and advisor in the quest to restore MAS to better health. Once and for all cure this over-staffing problem ... it is no use defending this situation by saying that labour is cheap ... this over-staffing situation has not led to better service. How many times have I seen more check-in staff at the counter than is necessary ... how many times have I gone to the gate one hour before the flight when the gate should be opened ... only to see the staff inside the gate holdroom chatting, munching tidbits or just doing nothing. In most cases, the gate holdroom is opened between 45-50 minutes before departure. Has MAS sold off those expensive London properties (for which I am certain high property taxes are paid each year) and those Botero art pieces in the head office? And while it tries to turn around one more time ... how about deciding on one corporate identity and stick to it. Right now, there must be at least four variants. KC Sim