The one which stood out in early 2006 was whether the plane would pass the 90-second-evacuation test, which was due to take place in March.

ECONOMIST: An aviation giant faces difficulties on several fronts

The test will also include the evacuation of coastal communities in several countries, notably India and Malaysia.

UNESCO: THEMES

"You may have a very sophisticated system but the real test is how that ultimately leads to timely evacuation and actionable information, " Vatsa said.

CNN: Asian tsunami warning system: A last-mile challenge