Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

[The Right Honourable Mlle Antéchrist]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056

Looks like the hijacking theory is back on the table:

The communications systems of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were deliberately disabled, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.

According to satellite and radar evidence, he said, the plane then changed course and could have continued flying for a further seven hours.

He said the "movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane".

The plane disappeared a week ago with 239 people on board.

Mr Razak stopped short of saying it was a hijacking, saying only that they were investigating "all possibilities".

He said the plane could be anywhere from Kazakhstan to the Indian Ocean.

The flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:40 local time (16:40 GMT) on 8 March and disappeared off air traffic controllers' screens at about 01:20.

Mr Razak told a news conference that new satellite evidence shows "with a high degree of certainty" that the one of the aircraft's communications systems - the Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System - was disabled just before it had reached the east coast of Malaysia.

Shortly afterwards, near the cross-over point between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic controllers, the plane's transponder - which emits an identifying signal - was switched off, he said.

According to a military radar, the aircraft then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.

A satellite was able to pick up a signal from the plane until 08:11 local time - more than seven hours after it lost radar contact - although it was unable to give a precise location, Mr Razak said.

He went on to say that based on this new data, investigators "have determined the plane's last communication with a satellite was in one of two possible corridors":

• a northern corridor stretching from the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan through to northern Thailand
• a southern corridor stretching from Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean

Mr Razak said that in light of the new evidence, the investigation had "entered a new phase" and would focus on the crew and passengers on board.

Graphic to give an idea of how huge a search area we're talking about here:

[Barbarella]

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26591056

Looks like the hijacking theory is back on the table:

The communications systems of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were deliberately disabled, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.

According to satellite and radar evidence, he said, the plane then changed course and could have continued flying for a further seven hours.

He said the "movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane".

The plane disappeared a week ago with 239 people on board.

Mr Razak stopped short of saying it was a hijacking, saying only that they were investigating "all possibilities".

He said the plane could be anywhere from Kazakhstan to the Indian Ocean.

The flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:40 local time (16:40 GMT) on 8 March and disappeared off air traffic controllers' screens at about 01:20.

Mr Razak told a news conference that new satellite evidence shows "with a high degree of certainty" that the one of the aircraft's communications systems - the Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System - was disabled just before it had reached the east coast of Malaysia.

Shortly afterwards, near the cross-over point between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic controllers, the plane's transponder - which emits an identifying signal - was switched off, he said.

According to a military radar, the aircraft then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.

A satellite was able to pick up a signal from the plane until 08:11 local time - more than seven hours after it lost radar contact - although it was unable to give a precise location, Mr Razak said.

He went on to say that based on this new data, investigators "have determined the plane's last communication with a satellite was in one of two possible corridors":

• a northern corridor stretching from the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan through to northern Thailand
• a southern corridor stretching from Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean

Mr Razak said that in light of the new evidence, the investigation had "entered a new phase" and would focus on the crew and passengers on board.

Graphic to give an idea of how huge a search area we're talking about here:

*HUH BOY!* They have to search a massive chunk of the freakin' planet!

If it's a hijacking, who'd do it and why. Okay, we have Malaysia, China, Some Europeans. If it's terrorists, there's usually a reason for picking a target that involves some personal animosity. Is there any animosity between China & Malaysia? Is it some Malaysian Wahabi kooks? Something with the pilot?

If this is a hijacking of some sort it seems pretty sophisticated.


Now they are saying that maybe the pilots were up to something.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/03/15/malaysia-airlines-diverted-deliberately_n_4969855.html

[KZN02]

Has anyone considered the possibility the hijackers only want the plane? In that case, I hope they release the passengers.

[ironbite]

Maybe they already did release the passengers.

Ironbite-and that's a scary thought.

[I am lizard]

You'd think that if it was a hijacking someone would announce it and demand something.

[Barbarella]

Somehow I'm thinking it's another "pilot suicide". Forgive me if I'm wrong. I hope they find SOMETHING soon.

[I am lizard]

Somehow I'm thinking it's another "pilot suicide". Forgive me if I'm wrong. I hope they find SOMETHING soon.

You'd think he'd have just gone into the ocean though.

[Barbarella]

This case is too weird. In various comments sections (yeah, that den of scum & villainy) I often read this type of exchange:

PERSON 1: "If it was terrorism, someone would have took credit by now."

PERSON 2: "Not necessarily. What if this is 'Phase 1'?"

*bleh* I hope not.

[Ultimate Paragon]

If it is a terrorist attack, who's behind it?  What's the motive?

[MadCatTLX]

If it is a terrorist attack, who's behind it?  What's the motive?

The motive might be to acquire a large, long range cruise missile. It's more than big enough to carry any nuclear device that they could acquire. The question is what the target would be.

[I am lizard]

If it is a terrorist attack, who's behind it?  What's the motive?

The motive might be to acquire a large, long range cruise missile. It's more than big enough to carry any nuclear device that they could acquire. The question is what the target would be.

I'm pretty sure if you wanted to detonate a nuke you'd just drive a car into a major city a kablooie. A plane would be used to ram into a skyscraper.

[RavynousHunter]

That's assuming you can get the nuke into your target country in the first place.  A plane might make such a delivery easier.  Plus, if I remember correctly, an air burst with a nuke would actually be far worse than a ground detonation, since it'd be able to cover a greater area.

[I am lizard]

That's assuming you can get the nuke into your target country in the first place.  A plane might make such a delivery easier.  Plus, if I remember correctly, an air burst with a nuke would actually be far worse than a ground detonation, since it'd be able to cover a greater area.

That would make sense I suppose. It's not a pleasant thought though.

[Art Vandelay]

Since we're all blindly speculating, I may as well throw in my best guess. I'd say the most likely scenario is that it went tits up for the hijackers. Some time after they cut communications and left radar range, something or other went wrong (passenger riot, a la that would-be 9/11 attack that crashed in Pennsylvania?) and the plane went down before it could reach its destination. Hence why nothing whatsoever has happened, no demands, no 9/11 repeat and nobody taking credit.

[I am lizard]

Since we're all blindly speculating, I may as well throw in my best guess. I'd say the most likely scenario is that it went tits up for the hijackers. Some time after they cut communications and left radar range, something or other went wrong (passenger riot, a la that would-be 9/11 attack that crashed in Pennsylvania?) and the plane went down before it could reach its destination. Hence why nothing whatsoever has happened, no demands, no 9/11 repeat and nobody taking credit.

That would make the most sense.