What we need to learn from MH370

"If the black box flight recorder is never damaged during a plane crash, why isn't the whole airplane made out of the stuff?"  – Daniel Tosh

How do you make sense of MH370?

I must have flown more than 400 times in the last 15 years, and the thought of what happened to flight MH370 at a cruising altitude of several kilometres over the earth, the safest part of a journey, has become a Bermuda Triangle mystery.

I share the sentiments of many: how can a plane, Boeing 777-200ER, just disappear with today’s (tracking of flights) technology? This is not to point fingers at Boeing or Malaysian Airlines (MAS), but, as passengers, we assume every take-off has been thoroughly vetted for structural integrity, equipment functionality, security has allowed on ‘fly-list’ passengers, etc.

Obviously, there are external events that cannot be controlled.

Mind

What must have flashed through the minds of passengers and crew during the immediate (assumed) demise? I pray there is hope to find survivors, but the longer it takes – it has been more than 60 hours at time of writing – the chances become more remote.

(I’m presently in GCC and fly back home to the United States tomorrow, a 15-hour trip, and the mind-set is very different about travelling now. I would be a liar if I said I was not nervous. Would I travel with Malaysian Airlines, if it were still flying into Newark Airport? Yes, without any reservations as it has a good history on safety.)

I, like many travellers, who have encountered violent air-turbulence, including plane drop over the oceans, can say without a shadow of a doubt that it is the most helpless feeling in the world. You don’t know when it’s going to end. You recite a prayer (Al-Faitah).You pray there is not another one! And you continue to pray till you land!

You grab the armrest and squeeze as hard as possible, thinking it will provide some comfort, but that is also going down.

You look at your neighbour, and they have the look of embracing for an impact. For many, it’s the first time you make eye contact with your neighbor.

You look at the stewardess and you can literally lip-read the prayers she is reciting.

You hear the pilot’s voice over the PA system, and try to find strength that the turbulence will be over soon.

You can hear the spoons, cups, and plates colliding and falling in the gallery, and that just exacerbates the heightened tension.

You hear screams from fellow passengers, be it first class to coach, and it’s all the same.

You literally have your life pass before your eyes, and, in those few seconds, your brain has computing power of a super computer, thinking about everything concurrently and still making sense. It’s your life history plus a living will made on the spot!

The above is just from making it through some turbulence.

I pray it was peaceful for these brave people.

Tragedy

Is there a silver lining in tragedies?

Tragedies have a tendency to bring people and countries together. For example, death in a family, especially if it’s the patriarch or matriarch, generally makes family closer knit, at least for the short term, as it’s about coming together. There is a therapeutic effect of "healing beginning" in the coming together.

For example, the tragedy of 9/11 brought people and countries together on a united front against extremism. Or the tsunami, Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy showed the global outpouring into the hard-hit areas, and it did not matter if it was remote rural villages or developed cities.

"There is a saying in Tibetan, 'Tragedy should be utilised as a source of strength ... No matter what sort of difficulties, how painful experience is, if we lose our hope, that's our real disaster."  – Dalai Lama XIV

Takeaways

As the investigation continues in understanding and recreating the last few minutes of MH370, I, like many others, hope there are humanity and technical takeaways.

On the technology, there must be a better way to track flights, from taking off to cruising to landing, that cannot be "disengaged, disabled or destroyed", much like the announcement made by pilots/cabin crew before taking off about cigarette smoke detectors in the bathroom.

Pilots undergo testing periodically, as theories have been raised about pilot suicide. If passengers must undergo extensive scanning before boarding, a minor inconvenience for safety, then same applies to pilots.

Examining air-frame integrity and cabin pressure fatigue on equipment, especially in humid climates where planes are continuously in the air (to maximise revenue per seat).

For grieving families and those concerned, the airline, MAS, and politicians in Malaysia, have a responsibility to keep them updated, say, every 15 minutes. All of us have been stuck at airports, and not knowing about the status of the flight is anger-inducing, if not, airport rage. This is a million times worse, so politicians need to be human and don’t get upset if families want answers!

Joseph Stalin once said, "the loss of one life is a tragedy, loss of (239 or) a million lives (should not be) a statistic".

God bless those 239 people and their families, all our thoughts and prayers are with you. – March 11, 2014.