Free global airline tracking offered by Inmarsat after missing MH370

UK satellite operator Inmarsat has launched an offer of a free and basic tracking service to all the world’s passenger airlines.

The motion comes after the disappearance of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, which vanished without a trace on 8^th March 2014.

The announcement precedes a conference hosted by International Civil Aviation Organisation (ICAO) on aircraft tracking in Montreal, Canada, on Monday.

The firm reported that it was due to vague “electronic pings” emitted by existing Inmarsat equipment on the flight MH370 that directed the search to the Indian Ocean.

Cost is ordinarily the most common obstruction for airlines when it comes to the installation of a proficient tracking equipment.

Inmarsat recently announced that the free service would facilitate definitive positional information of all flights.

According to Inmarsat, the tracking service would see a plane determine its location using GPS and then transmit that data – together with heading, speed and altitude – over Inmarsat’s global network of satellites every 15 minutes for distinct confirmation of its location.

The company’s senior vice-president Chris McLaughlin told BBC News:”Our equipment is on 90% of the world’s wide-body jets already. This is an immediate fix for the industry at no cost.”

Both ICAO and IATA (International Air Transport Association) are still in contemplation about how to react to the complete disappearance of the Malaysian airline flight MH370.

However, both firms support the London-based organisation’s proposal of free tracking to “virtually 100% of the world’s long haul commercial fleet.”

Rupert Pearce, chief executive of Inmarsat, commented: “We welcome and strongly support ICAO’s decision to place the delivery of next-generation aviation safety services at the heart of the industry’s agenda at its meeting on 12^th May. Inmarsat has been providing global aviation safety services for over 20 years and we are confident that the proposals we have presented to ICAO and IATA represent a major contribution to enhancing aviation safety services on a global basis.”

It is believed that the service will also bring more peace of mind to passengers, pilots, international airlines and global organisations across the world.

Pearce said: “In the wake of the loss of MH370, we believe this is simply the right thing to do.”

Bethany Bishop