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On the evening of March 7, 2014, a total of 227 passengers and approximately 12 crew members entered a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 aircraft at the Kuala Lumpur airport. Their intended destination was Beijing and their flight was MH370.
That flight number has become shorthand for the deepest mystery in aviation history. The relatives of the victims have endured 10 years of not knowing of the fate of their loved ones.
In the early hours of 8 March, in the local time zone, authorities were unable to communicate with the airplane while it was flying over the South China Sea. In the weeks that followed, thorough examination of radar data and a series of satellite signals revealed that the plane deviated from its intended route, heading west across the South East Asian peninsula before turning south and continuing over the Indian Ocean.
If an airplane carrying passengers goes missing in the ocean, there is a known strategy for locating it: determining its probable path, scouring the water’s surface for any wreckage, and combing a specific region of the sea floor. This method was used to locate the crash site of Air France flight AF447 in the Atlantic Ocean in 2009. The flight, which was travelling from Rio de Janeiro to Paris, resulted in the deaths of 228 individuals. Analysis of the “black boxes” revealed a tragic sequence of mistakes made by an inexperienced pilot that ultimately caused the technical malfunctions to become fatal.
The information stored in the flight data and cockpit voice recorders from MH370, combined with determining who was in control of the aircraft, could offer significant insight into the plane’s fate. This could provide a sense of closure for the families and friends of those on board.
However, the transportation safety community has been unable to locate the aircraft. This has led to a lot of speculation. Various theories, such as a North Korean missile or the aircraft being kept in a hangar in Kazakhstan, have been proven false.
However, that opens up a vast range of opportunities.
Did the number of passengers on the Boeing exceed 239 during takeoff from Kuala Lumpur? Was there intentional loss of communication with air-traffic controllers, possibly by someone intentionally diverting the aircraft and causing it to crash into the sea? Alternatively, did the plane unintentionally stray off course and run out of fuel?
Finding the missing airplane could potentially provide answers to the unknown. However, despite two thorough searches of a specific area in the Indian Ocean over the course of 10 years, all that remains are random pieces of debris found on shore.
“The official report by nineteen accident investigators stated, ‘The team was unable to determine the true reason for the disappearance of MH370.'”
These are the essential inquiries; numerous of the responses are still undetermined.
What events occurred?
The plane of Malaysia Airlines departed as scheduled from Kuala Lumpur on a regular trip to Beijing. According to the passenger list, there were 239 individuals on the aircraft – however, there are theories that there could have been an additional person hiding in an under-floor compartment before carrying out a mass killing.
At 1:19 AM, the captain acknowledged a directive from air traffic controllers in Malaysia by saying, “Good night Malaysian Three Seven Zero.” This was the final reported radio communication from flight MH370.
According to the official investigation report, he failed to repeat the designated frequency, which goes against standard radio-telephony procedures.
During the transfer of responsibilities from the Malaysian to Vietnamese air-traffic controllers, the airplane seemed to disappear.
The initial indication of a problem occurred when air traffic controllers in Vietnam were unsuccessful in communicating with the Boeing 777.
Following a flurry of erroneous reports stating that MH370 had either changed course towards Cambodia or encountered technical difficulties and landed in southern China, the aircraft was officially declared missing. It was believed that the plane had most likely crashed in the South China Sea.
Reworded: Rescuers spent a week searching unsuccessfully in the waters between Malaysia and Vietnam. However, at a press conference in Kuala Lumpur, the Malaysian prime minister, Najib Razak, declared dramatically that the airplane had stayed in flight for several hours after it vanished.
What information did we uncover regarding the possible location of the aircraft?
Examining radar and satellite data reveals that there was a sudden change in trajectory as the object reversed its path over the Malaysian peninsula and then proceeded south of Penang before ultimately heading northwest towards the southern Indian Ocean.
The aircraft ran out of fuel and ultimately crashed in the Indian Ocean west of Australia, which was thousands of miles from its planned destination.
The plane was estimated to be within the location referred to as the “Seventh Arc” along the western coast of Australia.
Reconnaissance flights from a northern air force base in Australia were initiated to search the suspected crash site. Two unprecedent
The largest ever underwater investigation, led by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, was ended in January 2017 after a span of two years.
In 2018, a U.S. company named Ocean Infinity conducted a search for several months on a “no-find, no-fee” arrangement in a different area of the ocean floor.
Some pieces of the plane were found on beaches in the Indian Ocean. However, despite examining the type of barnacles on the plane’s “flaperon”, investigators were still unable to find the wreckage.
Did the pilot cause it?
Investigators have assessed various hypotheses in attempting to clarify the disappearance. However, all of them possess significant deficiencies. One plausible explanation is that the pilot, Captain Zaharie Shah, deliberately hijacked the aircraft with the intention of either committing suicide and killing all passengers, or landing and surviving the ordeal.
It is believed by many that Captain Shah locked the first officer out of the flight deck. He then proceeded to disable the communication systems meant for keeping MH370 connected with air-traffic controllers. Afterward, he put on an oxygen mask and depressurized the aircraft.
At an elevation surpassing Mount Everest, the individuals aboard and any other crew members would quickly succumb to a lack of oxygen (hypoxia) and perish.
According to the theory, the pilot purposely flew the plane along the border of Thailand and Malaysia to avoid attracting attention from either military. He then changed course and flew south to a location he believed would never be discovered.
The official report stated that there was no past record of disinterest, unease, or agitation. Additionally, there were no notable alterations in his daily habits, conflicts with others, or family-related pressures.
Fariq Abdul Hamid, who was 27 at the time, served as the first officer on his inaugural Boeing 777 flight without a supervising training captain. Prior to this, he had only flown the aircraft five times. According to the investigators, his performance and professional attitude were deemed satisfactory.
Moreover, it appears improbable that an individual with such minimal exposure to the airplane would be capable of executing such a scheme.
Unfortunately, several pilots have deliberately caused crashes – most notably the heartbreaking case of the Germanwings flight 9525 from Barcelona to Dusseldorf, where the copilot took his own life along with 150 others. However, there has never been such a significant time delay between the seizure and the resulting crash.
Furthermore, the investigators determined that there is no proof indicating that the pilot in command (also known as the captain) or the first officer experienced any recent changes or challenges in their personal relationships, or that there were any conflicts or issues between them.
There had not been any financial difficulties or upcoming bankruptcy, no recent or added insurance bought, and no recent changes in the behavior of the crew.
The experts also examined the radio communications of both pilots and found “no indication of distress or tension.”
What is the suspected reason for the vanishing of MH370 according to experts?
Martin Dolan, the man who oversaw the two-year seabed search conducted by the Australian Transport Safety Bureau, stated that the process was conducted with great intention and thorough planning over a long period of time.
Philip Baum, a renowned expert in aviation security, agrees that the prevailing belief is that the disappearance of MH370 was caused by a deliberate criminal act. According to Baum, it is widely believed that the aircraft was intentionally diverted from its designated flight path through manual means.
We must determine who committed the act and their whereabouts at the time.
What is his intuition?
I continue to maintain my belief that pilot-assisted suicide is the most probable reason for the loss, as it would provide an explanation for nearly every aspect of the diverted flight and even the absence of evidence supporting any other possibilities.
“All other scenarios require at least one other person to be aware, except for the stowaway who potentially acted alone. This is why I believe the stowaway scenario is a viable possibility.”
A possible explanation is that someone hid in the avionics bay near the flight deck and then took over control of the plane, potentially in a suicidal act or with the hope of landing on a distant island.
Is it possible that a passenger or a member of the cabin crew could be at fault?
Due to the high number of passengers and 10 cabin crew members, there are many potential reasons for concern. Kuala Lumpur International Airport has implemented typical safety protocols for aviation. However, as evidenced by the tragic events of 9/11, simply passing through a checkpoint does not guarantee that a passenger does not pose a danger to the aircraft and its occupants.
A total of 227 individuals were on the flight, including three children and two infants. The majority of the passengers were from China, with Malaysia being the next largest group.
Two individuals from Iran were using passports that were not their own, one belonging to an Italian and the other to an Austrian. However, it seems that their intention was not to cause harm, but rather to travel to a Western destination as illegal immigrants.
The entire cabin crew, consisting of 10 individuals, were married and had children. This led some to believe that they would be less likely to hijack the aircraft.
Will we ever find out?
Aviation security expert Philip Baum expresses a certain level of assurance that the wreckage will be discovered and the reason behind it will eventually be understood. However, he is unsure if this will happen within his lifetime.
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Source: independent.co.uk
