Private jets join the search for missing malaysian airlines mh370
Peter Jackson’s Gulfstream 650 is now being used in the search effort to to find the missing Malaysian Boeing 777 aircraft.
The Lord of the Rings film director has donated the use of his aircraft to support the search in the Indian Ocean, which is now in its second week.
Given the challenging and time-sensitive conditions of this search, the Gulfstream G650 is ideally suited to the job.
The aircraft is one of the fastest and most technologically advanced business jets in the world, with a top speed of 0.925 Mach, and a range of 7000 nautical miles.
This means that the G650 aircraft will be able to reach the search area quickly from the nearest airport in Perth, with enough fuel left for hours of search time.
Due to the remote and vast location of the search zone in the Indian Ocean, many of the military aircraft are burning significant fuel just to get there, before needing to turn back to refuel again.
The aircraft also has sixteen large, oval windows which will allow optimal viewing on board for those looking for sightings of aircraft debris.
Other private jets have also been involved in the search. On 21 March it was announced that a Bombardier Global Express had been dispatched from Perth.
Like the G650, the Global Express has a long range capacity, allowing it to fly for 5320 nautical miles non-stop.
This isn’t the first time that private jet owners have loaned their aircraft for emergency support.
During the Haiti Earthquake disaster in January 2010, many private jet owners in the USA donated their aircraft to get doctors and medical supplies to the disaster zone as soon as possible.
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