QZ 8501. A recent disappearance of yet another plane continues to mystify us, as the air of puzzlement and anxiety intensifies. Many theorists have struggled to pacify us with plausible explanations of what had happened, ranging from it being struck down by lightning, to abduction by aliens, and many more which exceed our wildest imaginations. But what this incident actually highlights to us, is the unknowns of science and nature. We might have numerous scientific advancements in the past century; we might have countless breakthroughs in the past decade; but all is but a drop of water in the ocean. This haunting incident signals that there is much more that we have yet to know. And it is our duty to conquer this untrodden realm.

Ever since the disappearance of MH370 this year, came this similarly haunting event which so recently occurred. What precautions had been taken up after the disappearance of MH370? Were there any heightens in security checks, or additional safety measures that were implemented to prevent another similar incident? Even if there were, evidently, they were insufficient. It thus leads to a question which had been bugging me for a long time: when will the world start realising that this is a serious issue that needs to be tackled? When will they finally accelerate scientific research and heighten security measures to ensure the safety of all passengers? How many similar incidents such as these will have to occur before everyone starts waking up their idea, and realising that this is not a nightmare, but a heartbreaking reality? One missing plane is one too many. Research and concerns, in my opinion, should not merely be placed on the concerned parties and countries involved, but should rather be a global issue, where everyone chips in their part to make air travel safe as it should be.

Numerous officials have commented that such an incident is a rare one-off event and shrugs it off nonchalantly, but I do not think so. What we are dealing with now is the tens and hundreds of innocent lives on each plane, and the air of confidence the passengers have on safe air travel which is slowly evaporating as the days go by. On the global scale, it is a much-needed call of action for everyone to delve deeper into the mysterious and unknown realm of science and nature, as well as to increase safety precautions and effective warning systems both in the airport and in planes to better secure the safety of everyone. By ensuring more reliable two-way contact between the plane and the outside world will it allow us to better understand the situation of the pilot and the passengers, and when it forms a clearer picture in our mind of what actually happened to the plane, it'll undoubtedly resolve many unnecessary worries in our mind. What is actually causing innate anxiety in all of us NOW, is the fact is that we do not have the slightest clue as to what had happened to the plane. Stemming from this is the issue of poor communication between the plane and the outside world, and that MUST be improved. Only then will it be a modest step towards clearing the doubts and worries people are having towards air travel.

Another point of concern from this event is the spreading of online rumours leading up to this event. On social media websites, unfounded and untrue news with screaming headlines claiming that "QZ8501 has crashed in the Indian Ocean" are ubiquitous. What makes it worse, is that people who were taken in by these false news continue sharing and spreading it to others, fully utilizing the capabilities of social media. However, propagation of false information is as harmful to everyone as it is to the close kins of those on board the plane. What will happen when the relatives of the passengers on this flight see such news? Will it not rob them of any hope that their family member might still be alive? Hence, it is my call to action to all online denizens, that before the outcome has been disclosed by the news and media, refrain from propagating such false information or jumping to conclusions. Instead, filtering of such false news should be an ability all of us should have; sharing them helps no one. It will not be an easy task to fully eradicate it, but all of us must play a part in thinking before we act (in this case, share), and when this is achieved, rumours online will soon meet a brick wall and its path hindered.

In a nutshell, the disappearance of Air Asia Jet QZ8501 teaches us more than what it seems to do. It isn't only a once-off event where a plane disappears; instead, it hints that there is much more that we do not know. (Unknowns of science/nature) Concerns should become a globalised issue, and should not merely be on the affiliated parties. (Sharing of responsibility) Advanced and improved communication devices and security measures should be installed in planes and airports to better clear any air of doubts we might have, and possibly to prevent a similar incident from occurring. (Improved communication, precautions) Last but not least, the propagation of online rumours must also be halted to prevent them from causing any psychological trauma to the kins of relatives on the plane, and everyone will have a part to play in doing so. (Eradication of online rumours). Malaysian Airlines Flight 370, Air France Flight 447, American Airlines Boeing 727-223 and an Indian Air Force cargo plane, are names of planes which had mysteriously disappeared in the past. A moment of silence to those on the aforementioned planes, and let us pray that the list will not go on anymore in the future.