Do carriers have the ability to track individual tails via SATCOM, in conjunction with OFDM?

Most carriers do their own flight tracking these days

Or indeed the people on board and their relatives! :confused:

SoS

Most of our 330's are equipped with a GPS type tracking system that feeds real time accurate position and flight information (Heading/Altitude/Speed) back to the company.

I cannot guarantee it works over the Atlantic but I would be amazed if it doesn't. Surely AF would have extremely accurate position reports fed back continuously.

We can hold out hope that a miracle is possible, just like in NYC. They could very well be sitting in life rafts. I hope the SAR mission was initiated at the earliest indication of trouble.

Here's hoping.....

If you look at the satellite map north east of "Rio Garne do norte" you can see there is a severe weather. Its on the way to cape verde. Where there was no communication done.
Check this out
WunderMap Interactive Radar & Weather Stations : Weather Underground

If the A330 provides heading/speed/altitude information, perhaps LAT/LONG would be transmitted too.

I suppose it's a question of semantics but a/c do disappear off radar if they disintegrate in midair - too early to speculate the cause but one could hazard a guess.

flightstats info
 

Teneriffe?
 

Based on the great circle route and the reported trip times, and last reported time, the aircraft was last seen around Teneriffe +/- a few hundred miles.

Obviously this location could vary by many hundreds of nm,but a location somewhere around the coast of North West Africa seems probable.

Latest Brazilian news:
- Brazilian Air Force mobilised for search
- alarm was sounded when flight failed to check in with Sal island (those of you familiar with the SAA transatlantic flights will know about Sal...)

If the aircraft has ACARS (which I am sure it must have) then a report of height, speed and position is reported every minute

http://cdn-www.airliners.net/aviatio.../0/1228003.jpg

This is the 330 in question.

French government reports that contact with the plane was lost at 3:20am BST which is earlier than the 6am reports currently. (source: AP)

taken off A.net: "According France 2, at 3.30 AM (French time), the pilot was in conversation with their company and was reporting hard turbulance and the conversation was cut off"

also reason that Fernando de Noronha island is mentioned is not because that is the area of the disappearance, its because its the most easterly atlantic AFB for the Brazilian Air Force - i.e. thats where they take off to go and search

French officials are also saying that its fuel, including reserves would have just run out too, so all hope seems lost unfortunately... a sad day

Air France Just Confirmed, Its lost. And there is no hope. Off the coast of west africa. Nearest San Pedro (VXE)

avaition-safety
 

just published:

ASN Aircraft accident Airbus A330-203 F-GZCP ? Atlantic Ocean

Not sure I understand the reaction of Air France
' Air France shares worries and concerns of family concerned'

I work for a regional carrier and as far as I'm aware hq knows exactly where all aircraft are at any one time of the day. Air France operates worldwide so this might be slightly different, but surely they most have means to track their aircraft?