The fate of the second Malaysian jetliner to go missing this year may boil down to a crucial two-minute delay in letting its pilot climb to a higher altitude.

A transcript released Monday of the final communication between air traffic control and the pilot of AirAsia Flight QZ 8501 early Sunday local time reveals a calm request to redirect the plane and then to climb to avoid a storm.

Air traffic control couldn’t say yes immediately because six other planes were crowding the higher airspace, forcing Flight QZ 8501 to remain at a lower altitude, the transcript reveals.

By the time the pilot was given the OK, a mere two minutes later, it was apparently too late — there was no response from the cockpit.

Indonesia’s state navigation operator said late Monday that the Airbus 320-200 pilot, Capt. Iriyanto, who goes by one name, had requested permission to turn left to avoid a storm.

The request was granted and the plane turned left for seven miles.

The captain then sent his fateful message at 6:12 a.m., saying, “Request to higher level,” according to AirNav Standards and Safety Director Wisnu Darjono, as quoted by the Jakarta Post.

“Intended to what level?” the controller responded. When Iriyanto said 38,000 feet, he was told to hold off because there were six other planes in that area.

“But when we informed the pilot of the approval at 6:14 a.m., we received no reply,” Wisnu said.

The plane was never seen or heard from again, and minutes later, it disappeared from radar.

News of the plane’s final moments came as angry families demanded answers from airline officials.

Among the questions they had was about a decision to move up the departure time by two hours, a change that caused some lucky passengers to miss the flight and may have set it on a perilous course.

As a second day of searching for the jet ended unsuccessfully, Indonesia formally asked the United States for help, and the US Navy’s 7th Fleet was standing by, ready to assist.