Big Storms Littered Path of Missing AirAsia Jet QZ8501: Forecaster

LONDON — Powerful storms littered the flight path of the AirAsia passenger plane that went missing with 162 aboard on Sunday, according to forecasters. Flight QZ8501 lost contact with air traffic control after requesting permission to change course due to weather.

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While there is no clear indication of what happened to the jet and what caused its disappearance, Michael Palmer — lead forecaster at The Weather Channel — said "there were numerous showers and hail throughout the Java Sea and the flight path.”

The large clusters of thunderstorms, some as tall as 50,000 feet, would have forced a pilot to change course, he added. The flight “could have run into turbulence and hail. We don’t know if it was the cause but certainly the weather was not calm,” Palmer added.

IN-DEPTH

• 'Lost Contact': AirAsia Jet With 162 Aboard Goes Missing

• 'Pray for All': Messages Pour In For Missing Flight

— F. Brinley Bruton