@jakobos
So, what about transmitting/broadcasting the information simply to other crafts in the "vicinity" ?
Excuse me, but this suggestion in many forms has been raised and debated in this and other AF447 threads for some time.
It is doomed to fail, for one the infrastructure doesn't exist, and secondly there are some very lonely Oceanic routes out there where the chances of having other aircraft within the 'so-called' range would be minimal. The Buenos Aries (EZE) to Auckland (AKL) route is one that comes to mind - 5,600NM, and for 5,000NM of the track, the chances of having reciprocal or same direction traffic in range is basically zip/zero, i.e. the sole westbound aircraft becomes the sole eastbound service on the return leg.
mm43