Incident: Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 Transponder Failure Incident

Published Date: 2014-03-12

Postmortem Analysis
Timeline 1. The software failure incident involving a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 occurred in August 2005 [25518].
System 1. Transponder on Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 [25518] 2. Software measuring speed and acceleration on a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur [25518]
Responsible Organization 1. The software failure incident on the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 in August 2005 was caused by the plane's software incorrectly measuring speed and acceleration, leading to a sudden increase in altitude. This incident was attributed to a software fault [25518].
Impacted Organization 1. Malaysia Airlines [25518]
Software Causes 1. Software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the plane to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet [25518].
Non-software Causes 1. Loss of communication and transponder signal at around 1.20am without a change in altitude or course, suggesting a sudden event caused the plane to crash [Article 25518]. 2. Potential catastrophic failure of the aircraft due to a sudden end to all communication without a distress signal [Article 25518]. 3. Unlikelihood of a complete electrical failure due to redundancies in the system, such as the ram air turbine generating electricity for critical systems [Article 25518]. 4. Incident in August 2005 involving a Boeing 777 from Malaysia Airlines where the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing a sudden altitude increase [Article 25518].
Impacts 1. The software failure incident on a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 in August 2005 caused the plane's software to incorrectly measure speed and acceleration, leading to the aircraft suddenly shooting up 3,000 feet while flying over the Indian Ocean. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot and safely land back in Perth. A software update was promptly implemented on planes worldwide to address the issue [25518].
Preventions 1. Regular software maintenance and updates to ensure accurate measurements and calculations, as demonstrated by the incident in August 2005 where a software update resolved the issue [25518]. 2. Implementation of robust testing procedures to detect and rectify software bugs or anomalies before they lead to critical failures. 3. Enhanced monitoring systems to promptly identify any deviations or abnormalities in the software's performance to prevent potential incidents.
Fixes 1. A software update was quickly made on planes around the world to fix the software failure incident that occurred in August 2005 with a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur [25518].
References 1. Tom Clarke, Channel 4 News 2. John Goglia, Forbes website 3. Malaysia's Department Civil Aviation Director General, Azharuddin Abdul Rahman 4. Malaysian Airlines CEO Group Ahmad Jauhari Yahya

Software Taxonomy of Faults

Category Option Rationale
Recurring one_organization (a) The software failure incident related to Malaysia Airlines' Boeing 777 happened again within the same organization. In August 2005, a Malaysia Airlines 777 flying from Perth, Australia, to Kuala Lumpur experienced a software failure where the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the aircraft to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot and safely land back in Perth. A software update was promptly implemented on planes worldwide to address the issue [25518]. (b) There is no specific information in the provided articles about a similar software failure incident happening at other organizations or with their products and services.
Phase (Design/Operation) design (a) The software failure incident related to the design phase can be seen in the article. In August 2005, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Perth, Australia, to Kuala Lumpur experienced a software failure. The incident was caused by the plane's software incorrectly measuring speed and acceleration, leading to the aircraft suddenly shooting up 3,000 feet while flying at 38,000 feet above the Indian Ocean. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot and descend to land safely back in Perth. A software update was promptly implemented on planes worldwide to address this issue [25518]. (b) The software failure incident related to the operation phase is not explicitly mentioned in the provided article.
Boundary (Internal/External) within_system (a) within_system: The software failure incident mentioned in the articles is related to a Boeing 777 operated by Malaysia Airlines. In August 2005, a 777 flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur experienced a software failure where the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the aircraft to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot and safely land back in Perth. A software update was promptly made on planes worldwide to address this issue [25518]. This incident falls under the category of within_system failure as it was caused by a software error originating from within the aircraft's system.
Nature (Human/Non-human) non-human_actions (a) The software failure incident occurring due to non-human actions: - The article mentions a software failure incident in August 2005 involving a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur. The incident was caused by the plane's software incorrectly measuring speed and acceleration, leading to the aircraft suddenly shooting up 3,000 feet. This incident was attributed to a non-human factor, specifically a software error [25518]. (b) The software failure incident occurring due to human actions: - The articles do not provide specific information about a software failure incident caused by human actions.
Dimension (Hardware/Software) hardware (a) The software failure incident related to hardware: - The article mentions an incident in August 2005 involving a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur. The plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the aircraft to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot and descend to land safely back in Perth. A software update was quickly implemented on planes worldwide [Article 25518]. (b) The software failure incident related to software: - The article does not provide specific details about a software failure incident originating directly from software issues.
Objective (Malicious/Non-malicious) non-malicious (a) The articles do not provide any information indicating a malicious software failure incident related to the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. [25518] (b) The software failure incident related to the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappearance in 2014 was non-malicious. The incident involved the transponder on the plane stopping working around 1.20 am without a change in altitude or course, leading to a sudden event causing the plane to crash. The failure was not attributed to any malicious intent but rather to a technical issue with the transponder. Additionally, there was a previous non-malicious software failure incident involving a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 in August 2005, where the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the aircraft to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet. This incident was resolved through a software update. [25518]
Intent (Poor/Accidental Decisions) unknown The articles do not provide specific information about a software failure incident related to poor decisions or accidental decisions. Therefore, the intent of the software failure incident in this case is unknown.
Capability (Incompetence/Accidental) accidental (a) The software failure incident related to development incompetence is not explicitly mentioned in the provided article [25518]. (b) The software failure incident related to accidental factors is mentioned in the article. In August 2005, a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 flying from Perth, Australia, to Kuala Lumpur experienced a software failure incident. The incident occurred when the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the aircraft to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet while flying at 38,000 feet above the Indian Ocean. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot and descend to land safely back in Perth. A software update was promptly implemented on planes worldwide to address the issue [25518].
Duration temporary The software failure incident related to the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 does not directly indicate whether the duration of the failure was permanent or temporary. The incident mentioned in the article is about the transponder on the plane stopping working at around 1.20 am without a change in altitude or course, leading to the disappearance of the aircraft. This incident does not provide clear information on whether the failure was permanent or temporary [25518].
Behaviour crash (a) crash: The article mentions a software failure incident related to a crash where the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing the plane to suddenly shoot up 3,000 feet while flying over the Indian Ocean. The pilot had to disengage the autopilot to regain control of the aircraft, and a software update was quickly made on planes worldwide to address the issue [Article 25518]. (b) omission: The article does not specifically mention a software failure incident related to omission. (c) timing: The article does not specifically mention a software failure incident related to timing. (d) value: The article does not specifically mention a software failure incident related to the system performing its intended functions incorrectly. (e) byzantine: The article does not specifically mention a software failure incident related to the system behaving erroneously with inconsistent responses and interactions. (f) other: The article does not provide information on any other specific behavior of the software failure incident.

IoT System Layer

Layer Option Rationale
Perception None None
Communication None None
Application None None

Other Details

Category Option Rationale
Consequence death, harm, theoretical_consequence (a) death: People lost their lives due to the software failure - The article mentions a fatal crash involving an Asiana Airlines jet landing short of the runway in San Francisco, resulting in three deaths [25518]. - There was also a reference to a Malaysia Airlines incident in August 2005 where the plane's software incorrectly measured speed and acceleration, causing a sudden ascent of 3,000 feet. Fortunately, the pilot was able to land the plane safely back in Perth, but this incident highlights the potential danger and risk associated with software failures in aviation [25518].
Domain transportation (a) The failed system was intended to support the transportation industry. The software failure incident was related to Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, a Boeing 777 aircraft that disappeared over the sea during a flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. The aircraft was equipped with technologies such as a transponder, black box recorder, and beacon designed to keep it in touch with air traffic controllers on the ground, emphasizing its role in supporting transportation [Article 25518].

Sources

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