Flight MH370 Live Blog

The search continues for the plane that went missing between Kuala Lumpur and Beijing with 239 people on board.

3rd & 7 37yd

Malaysia PM says despite media reports that the plane was hijacked we are investigating all possibilities, they are returning their focus to the crew and passengers.

by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 6:30:34 AM

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Malaysia PM: "The search for MH370 has entered new phase. We hope this new information brings us one step closer to finding the plane."

by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 6:32:20 AM

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Going on what the Malaysian prime minister said at the news conference, MH370 went in one of two different directions but right now the investigation team doesn't know which one. Here is a map of said directions.
Beau Baldwin
@beaubaldwin
#MH370 is thought to have gone in one of these two directions. pic.twitter.com/DhlI9Hsb78
Mar. 15, 2014
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by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 6:50:38 AM

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Key points from the Malaysian prime minister's news conference about MH370.
1. There is a high degree of certainty that the transponder was disabled just before MH370 reached the East coast of peninsular Malaysia. Shortly afterwards, near the border between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic control, the aircraft’s transponder was switched off.
2. The plane’s last communication with the satellite was in one of two possible corridors: a northern corridor stretching approximately from the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to northern Thailand, or a southern corridor stretching approximately from Indonesia to the southern Indian ocean.
3. The Malaysian authorities are ending operations in the South China Sea and reassessing the redeployment of assets.

by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 6:59:43 AM

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Not just India then...
Emma Graham-Harrison
@_EmmaGH
Extraordinary: Malaysian PM says 1 route 4 #MH370 was 2 Kazak-Turkmen borde. From maps, that's maybe over Afghanistan. Wouldn't ISAF notice?
Mar. 15, 2014
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by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 7:00:30 AM

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The investigation into missing flight MH370 hasn't thrown up many developments, but it has given rise to plenty of conspiracy theories. A former naval officer debunks theories about radars, cellphones and oil slicks.

by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 7:33:05 AM

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Malaysia PM Najib Razak spoke of a northern corridor. This graphic purports to show possible routes in said corridor.
Alert 5
@alert5
Using IFR enroute chart from @SkyVector ,the possible routes taken by #MH370 on the northern corridor is mind blogging pic.twitter.com/sF0uSE5aFH
Mar. 15, 2014
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by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 7:35:06 AM

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Andrew Buncombe, the Asia correspondent for the Independent newspaper in the UK, has published a transcript of the Malaysian prime minister's statement from Saturday's news conference about MH370.

by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 8:10:56 AM

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China's foreign ministry is demanding that Malaysia keep providing more thorough and more accurate information about Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. It is also asking more countries to be involved with the search, according to a statement published on Saturday [Reuters]

by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 8:51:41 AM

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WSJ India
@WSJIndia
Here's how the search for #MH370 is changing course. on.wsj.com/1qFtiRN pic.twitter.com/lcdEFmno9d
Mar. 15, 2014
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by Riazat.Butt 3/15/2014 10:46:20 AM

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Painful wait for relatives of MH370 passengers

Relatives of the passengers on board the missing Malaysia Airlines flight voiced fear after reports released on Saturday said the plane's diversion may have been intentional.

Flight MH370 has now been missing for seven days.

No debris or signs of the plane have been found despite a search operation that includes 57 ships and 48 aircraft and covers the Strait of Malacca, the Indian Ocean and the Andaman Sea.

[AFP]

[AP]
[AP]
[AP]
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by Heather.Roy 3/15/2014 12:42:02 PM

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Weighing the possible causes of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370

After a week of searching yielded few concrete results on the whereabouts of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, aviation safety expert Steve Preteska told Al Jazeera that "it's too early to come up with a specific theory".

He also called speculation of outside interference in the cockpit "a remarkable deviation from policy and security procedures".

by Al Jazeera English via YouTube

by Heather.Roy 3/15/2014 2:56:06 PM

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We've added a couple of updates to our story. If you want to read more about what aviation safety expert Steve Preteska had to say on developing theories on the missing flight, click here.

by Heather.Roy 3/15/2014 3:59:47 PM

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Japan concludes search for missing plane

Malaysia's prime minister called off the search over the South China Sea after data revealed new leads [AP]

A Japanese search team made its last flight on Saturday, as the hunt for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH307 ends in the South China Sea.

Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Tun Razak said earlier on Saturday the search over the area would cease, after satellite data suggested the airliner flew north towards Kazakhstan or south over the Indian Ocean.

[RTV]

by Heather.Roy 3/15/2014 4:08:02 PM

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MH370
@M_H370
Kind of disconcerting that you can flip a switch on the flight deck and a giant plane becomes “invisible.” #MH370
Mar. 15, 2014
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If you want to know about how easy it is to turn off an airplane's transponder, a device which wirelessly transmits and receives electrical signals, check out our interview with aviation safety expert Steve Preteska.
by Heather.Roy 3/15/2014 4:27:00 PM

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The confusing case of MH370

"There have been so many contradictions that it’s hard to pinpoint exactly when the Malaysians stopped talking sense," Amy Davidson of the New Yorker.

[The New Yorker]

by Heather.Roy 3/15/2014 5:40:33 PM

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India puts on hold search for missing plane:

India on Sunday put on hold its search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370, at the request of the government in Kuala Lumpur, which wants to reassess the week-old hunt for the Boeing 777 that is now suspected of being hijacked.

India had been searching in two areas, one around the Andaman and Nicobar Islands and a second further west in the Bay of Bengal. Both searches have been suspended, but may resume, defence officials said.

Commander Babu, a spokesman for the country's Eastern Naval Command, said:
It's more of a pause. The Malaysian authorities are reassessing the situation. They will figure whether they need to shift the area of search.
[Reuters]

by Tamila Varshalomidze 3/16/2014 3:02:02 AM

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Police search co-pilot's home in missing Malaysia plane probe:

Police investigating the disappearance of a Malaysian passenger jet more than a week ago have searched the home of the co-pilot, a senior official said, after the prime minister said the aircraft had been deliberately flown way off course.

A senior police official with knowledge of the investigation said special branch officers had searched the home of 27-year-old First Officer Fariq Abdul Hamid on Saturday evening.

Hours earlier, police had searched the house of the aircraft's 53-year-old captain, Zaharie Ahmad Shah.

"We are not ruling out any sort of motivation at the moment," the police official said. [Reuters]

by Tamila Varshalomidze 3/16/2014 3:06:58 AM

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Focus turns to pilots as hunt for jet widens:

Attention focused Sunday on the pilots of the missing Malaysia Airlines flight after the country's leader announced findings so far that suggest someone with intimate knowledge of the Boeing 777's cockpit seized control of the plane and sent it off-course.

"In view of this latest development, the Malaysian authorities have refocused their investigation into the crew and passengers on board."

Prime Minister Najib Razak

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 4:16:59 AM

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Evidence that points to an expert takeover:

The AP news agency have interviewed aviation experts who have described three reasons the missing Malaysia Airlines jet could have been taken over by someone with knowledge of how the plane works.

Transponder:
The signal system the identifies the plane to radar was shut off about an hour into the flight.
This is a multi-step process that has to be done from the cockpit, according to John Goglia, a former member of the National Transportation Safety Board. That is something a pilot would know how to do, but it could also be learned by someone who researched the plane on the Internet, he said.

Attention has now turned to passengers and crew on the flight [Reuters]
ACARS:
The Boeing 777's Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) was also partially shut off.
The system, which has two parts, is used to send short messages via a satellite or VHF radio to the airline's home base. The part that was shut off, the information section, would be known to pilots or someone researching on the internet. The transmission section, which was left on, is more difficult to shut down and a pilot would not normally know how to do it.

Guided Flight:
The third indication is that that after the transponder was turned off and civilian radar lost track of the plane, Malaysian military radar was able to continue to track the plane as it turned west.
The plane was then tracked along a known flight route across the peninsula until it was several hundred miles (kilometers) offshore and beyond the range of military radar. Airliners normally fly from waypoint to waypoint where they can be seen by air traffic controllers who space them out so they don't collide. In order to follow that course, someone had to be guiding the plane, Goglia said.

[AP]

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 4:42:20 AM

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India suspends search:

"The entire operation is on hold for now. We are awaiting fresh instructions from Malaysia. Nothing came out of the search in designated areas on Saturday."

Colonel Harmit Singh, Indian armed forces spokesman

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 4:49:43 AM

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Holding on to hope for the missing MH370:

[Reuters]

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 6:37:18 AM

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Malaysian authorities reach out for international help:

Malaysian officials have said they are contacting countries along the northern and southern corridors of their search for missing flight MH370.

The countries include: Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Pakistan, Bangladesh, India, China, Myanmar, Laos, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Australia and France.

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 6:44:45 AM

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The hashtag #PrayforMH370 gains support:
intan norhafiza
@Intan_Norhafiza
"@Siti_Saleha : #MH370 instagram.com/p/ll_g-yjrjG/" #PrayForMH370
Mar. 16, 2014
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illionn
@28cactus
Pray for MH370 wishes at Aeon Kinta City pic.twitter.com/oLjFpWpaoa
Mar. 16, 2014
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by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 6:55:59 AM

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Pilot investigation is 'normal procedure':

Malaysia's government said on Sunday that police had searched the homes of the two pilots of a missing airliner and were examining the captain's home flight simulator, but cautioned it was "normal" procedure.

"We appeal to the public not to jump to conclusions regarding the police investigation."

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 7:00:03 AM

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Malaysian police examine pilot's flight simulator:

Malaysia's government says police are examining an elaborate flight simulator that one of the pilots of the missing Malaysian airliner had set up in his home.

Malaysia's Transport Ministry said on Sunday that police have searched the homes of both the pilot and co-pilot the previous day.

by Philippa Stewart 3/16/2014 7:19:03 AM

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Putrajaya, Malaysia [EPA]

by AJE Staff 3/16/2014 9:20:24 AM

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Malaysia has appealed for help and international coordination in the search, stretching across two corridors from the Caspian Sea to the southern Indian Ocean, diplomats say.

Malaysian officials have briefed envoys from about 20 countries on progress in the investigation

"The meeting was for us to know exactly what is happening and what sort of help they need. It is more for them to tell us, 'please put in all your resources'," T.S. Tirumurti, India's high commissioner to Malaysia, told Reuters.

by AJE Staff 3/16/2014 9:34:56 AM

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Malaysian investigators are still waiting for some countries to send background checks on passengers who were on a missing Malaysia Airlines jetliner as they intensify inquiries into a suspected deliberate diversion of the plane, the country's police chief said on Sunday.

"There are still a few countries yet to respond to our requests," Khalid Abu Bakar told a news conference. Police are also investigating airport ground staff and have intensified their checks on the two pilots, including examining a flight simulator seized from the captain's home, he said.

Investigators have stepped up their scrutiny of the 239 crew members and passengers of lost Malaysia Airlines.

[Reuters]

by Basma Atassi 3/16/2014 11:07:42 AM

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Malaysia said Sunday the number of countries searching for a missing airliner had nearly doubled to 25 as a full-scale criminal probe into its disappearance got under way, with particular scrutiny of the pilots.

Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein said the number of participating countries had jumped from 14 to 25 as the search for the aircraft focused on two vast, and vastly contrasting, land and ocean transport corridors. The dramatic "re-calibration" will inevitably bring "new challenges of coordination and diplomacy", the minister said.

Malaysian police said they had searched the homes of both pilots and examined the captain's home flight simulator after it became increasingly clear that the Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 that vanished March 8 had been deliberately diverted by someone on board. [AFP]

by Dee.K 3/16/2014 5:11:00 PM

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Latest updates for flight MH370:
Investigators look for motive in plane disappearance.
India puts on hold search for missing plane.
Police search co-pilot's home in missing plane probe.
China demands Malaysia give more accurate information.
Malaysian plane saga highlights air defence gaps.
Satellites scour for clues as jet mystery deepens.
India searches islands for lost Malaysian jetliner.
Malaysia failing credibility test.
In China, family members ramp up pressure over plane.
Spotting fake passports job of police not airlines-IATA.
US company puts crowd-sourcing to work in search.
[Reuters]
by Philippa Stewart edited by AJE Staff 3/16/2014 5:57:09 PM

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Focus turns to pilots as hunt for jet widens
by Al Jazeera English via YouTube
Twenty-five countries are now helping with the search for the missing Malaysia Airlines jet.
The plane appears to have been deliberately steered off-course eight days ago, with 239 passengers on board.
Al Jazeera's Florence Looi reports from Kuala Lampur.

by Dee.K edited by AJE Staff 3/16/2014 7:20:54 PM

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The Associated Press has an interesting piece on the possibility that one of the pilots may have chosen to kill himself. Though such incidents have happened before, the subject is apparently something of a taboo, with officials often reluctant to draw that conclusion.

by Barry Malone 3/17/2014 12:54:56 AM

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Australia will take responsibility for the "southern vector" of the search
for flight MH370 at the request of Malaysia, Prime Minister Tony Abbott says.

"He [PM Najib Razak] asked that Australia take responsibility for the search on the southern vector, which the Malaysian authorities now think was one possible flight path for this ill-fated aircraft."

by AJE Staff 3/17/2014 4:12:28 AM

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State media in China has once again attacked Malaysia for its handling of the crisis:

"The contradictory and piecemeal information Malaysia Airlines and its government have provided has made search efforts difficult and the entire incident even more mysterious. What else is known that has not been shared with the world?"

China Daily

by Philippa Stewart 3/17/2014 5:38:12 AM

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I K M A L
@ikmalwolf
#PrayForMH370 .. please come back #MH370 instagram.com/p/lodxl6SSX_/
Mar. 17, 2014
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by Philippa Stewart 3/17/2014 5:43:24 AM

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More countries join the search:

The number of countries involved in the search and rescue operation has increased from 14 to 26.

These countries are: Malaysia, Australia, Bangladesh, Brunei, China, France, India, Indonesia, Japan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Myanmar, New Zealand, Pakistan, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand, Turkmenistan, UAE, UK, US, Uzbekistan, and Vietnam.

by Philippa Stewart 3/17/2014 6:33:11 AM

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A map, provided by Malaysian authorities, of the 'north corridor' search area:

by Philippa Stewart 3/17/2014 9:55:39 AM

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Malaysian Defence Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has held another press briefing about the search and rescue operation.
"Yesterday, experts from Civil Aviation Administration of China joined the investigations team. Today, officials from the French Office of Investigations and Analysis for the Safety of Civil Aviation also joined the team. These authorities are working with Malaysia Airlines and the DCA to refine data that can help with the search. "

by AJE Staff 3/17/2014 10:04:32 AM

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The last words spoken from the cockpit of the plane - All right, good night - are believed to have been spoken by the co-pilot, the airline's top executive says.

"Initial investigations indicate it was the co-pilot who basically spoke," Malaysia Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya told a news briefing.

[AFP]

by AJE Staff 3/17/2014 10:14:15 AM

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Unclear when communications system switched off

A communications system in the plane could have been switched off before or after the last verbal contact with the flight deck.

"We don't know when the ACARS system was switched off. What we know is the last transmission," Malaysia Airlines' Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said.

Suspicions of hijacking or sabotage hardened on Sunday after officials said the last radio message from the cockpit was spoken after someone had begun disabling ACARS, one of the plane's automatic tracking systems.

[Reuters]

by AJE Staff edited by Philippa Stewart 3/17/2014 10:24:59 AM

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Australia has stepped up its efforts to find the missing Malaysian flight 370.

Australia will lead a search of the remote southern Indian Ocean for a missing Malaysian jet liner, its prime minister said on Monday, amid mounting evidence the plane's disappearance was a meticulously planned act of sabotage or hijacking, Reuters news agency reports.

[Reuters]

Read more here.

by Safeeyah Kharsany 3/17/2014 3:04:51 PM

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Countries from Australia to Kazakhstan intensify search for missing
Malaysia Airlines jet [AP]

by Safeeyah Kharsany 3/17/2014 3:09:27 PM

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Residents of Boeung Kak Lake pray for missing Malaysia Airlines plane in Phnom Penh.

People light candles to spell "MH370" during a Buddhist ceremony in Boeung Kak Lake [Reuters]

by Faisal Edroos 3/17/2014 9:06:29 PM

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A US defense official says the Navy ship that has been helping search for the missing Malaysian airliner is dropping out of the hunt.

The official, who spoke Monday on condition of anonymity because the decision has not been officially announced, said it was determined that long-range naval aircraft are a more efficient means of looking for the plane or its debris, now that the search area has broadened.

Navy P-3 and P-8 surveillance aircraft are still involved in the search.

But the official said the USS Kidd, an Arleigh Burke-class destroyer that has been searching in the Indian Ocean, will leave the area and return to its normal duties. It is part of the Navy's 7th Fleet.

The Malaysian Airlines plane has been missing for more than a week.
[Associated Press]

by Faisal Edroos 3/17/2014 9:07:44 PM

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