The search for AirAsia Flight 8501 has been largely commended as a success. While not without obstacles, the multilateral efforts led by host country Indonesia contributed to a smooth search. This success can be a positive precedent for future cooperation.

The multinational effort to locate the crashed Indonesia AirAsia Flight QZ8501 and recover victims has been largely commended as a success. Both “black boxes” – the cockpit voice recorder and flight data recorder – have been recovered and investigations are well under way as to what caused the tragic crash of the plane en route from Surabaya to Singapore.

Vessels and aircraft from several countries have participated in the search, with the Information Fusion Centre, located in Singapore’s Changi Naval Base, assisting in coordination efforts. Apart from the Indonesian Navy (TNI-AL) and the National Search and Rescue Agency (BASARNAS), the international contributors, other than Singapore, included Australia, China, Malaysia, the United States and Russia. The countries involved deployed maritime and air assets, including ships with sonar scanners and diving teams.

…Henrick Z. Tsjeng is an Associate Research Fellow with the Maritime Security Programme of the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies (RSIS), Nanyang Technological University.