Staff members unload AirAsia's QZ8501 from Surabaya to Singapore, which took the same code as the missing plane that took off 24 hours earlier
Staff members unload AirAsia's QZ8501 from Surabaya to Singapore, which took the same code as the missing plane that took off 24 hours earlier, at Changi Airport in Singapore December 29, 2014. Indonesia was set to resume at first light the search for an AirAsia plane carrying 162 people from the Indonesian city of Surabaya to Singapore, which went missing on Sunday just after the pilot requested a change in course to avoid bad weather. Singapore said it had sent two naval vessels to help the Indonesian military look for the Airbus A320-200 operated by Indonesia AirAsia, adding a C-130 air force plane took part in the search on Sunday. REUTERS/Edgar Su

The disappearance of AirAsia flight QZ8501 may have prompted references of the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370. The flight between Indonesia and Singapore went missing during early hours of Sunday, Dec. 28.

There were 162 people who went missing with the plane that included 16 children and one infant. AirAsia informs that there were seven crew members on board as well. AirAsia, based in Malaysia, is a budget airline which owns 49 pecent of AirAsia Indonesia. This is the third time in 2014 an airline based in Malaysia has lost a plane. There are some strange coincidences connecting the AirAsia QZ8501 flight and the MH370.

Malaysia

Both the airlines have a Malaysia connection. The headquarters of AirAsia is based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. The main hub is klia2 which is a low-cost carrier terminal at Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KLIA). Malaysia Airlines is also based in Malaysia and operates from KLIA, Kota Kinabalu and Kuching.

Deviation

Both the planes apparently deviated from their usual route. Hishammuddin Hussein, Malaysia's Minister of Defence and Acting Minister of Transport, confirmed in a press conference that MH370 had deviated from its usual route. However, he said that he would not be able to comment on speculative theories as to what might have caused the deviation from the original flight path. AirAsia also said that QZ8501 had requested a deviation from its planned route due to bad weather.

Time Lapse

The last time QZ8501 made communication with Jakarta's traffic control was at 6.13a.m. While all contacts were lost at 6.18 a.m., an INCERFA (the declaration that the plane was uncertain) was declared only at 7.29 a.m. Telegraph quoted a pilot saying that a western country would have declared an INCERFA by 06.26 a.m. Even in the case of MH370, it took about four hours for the officials to launch an emergency response effort.

International Travellers

Both the Asian flights had international travellers who also went missing with the flight. There were more than 150 Chinese travellers. In addition, there were travellers from 13 various countries. On the other hand, QZ8501 had a British national on board, who identified by BBC as Chi-Man Choi. He was apparently travelling with his 2-year-old daughter.

Contact the writer: s.mukhopadhyay@IBTimes.com.au