Missing Malaysia Airlines plane possibly hijacked: Malaysian officials
- 9 years ago
The investigation into the fate of the missing Malaysia Airlines flight has taken a dark turn as Malaysian officials say available information indicates the plane was deliberately flown off course, suggesting a possible hijacking.
Malaysian military radar data made available to the US, but not yet released publically, indicates the aircraft made dramatic changes in altitude after a sharp change in course once air traffic control lost the plane early on March 8.
The aircraft appears to have flown across peninsular Malaysia then northwest toward the Indian Andaman islands along flight waypoints, indicating whoever was piloting the jetliner had aviation experience.
Search efforts are now focused on two massive swathes of water in the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean.
Reuters reports: "Faint electronic signals sent to satellites from a missing Malaysian jetliner show it may have been flown thousands of miles off course before running out of fuel over the Indian Ocean, a source familiar with official U.S. assessments said.
"Investigators are focusing increasingly on foul play, as evidence suggests the plane turned sharply west after its disappearance and - with its communications systems deliberately switched off - continued to fly for perhaps several hours.
"'What we can say is we are looking at sabotage, with hijack still on the cards,' said a senior Malaysian police official.
The Associated Press cited an unnamed Malaysian government official as saying investigators had 'conclusively' established that one of the pilots or someone else with flying experience had hijacked the plane. That report could not immediately be confirmed with officials in Malaysia.
"Analysis in Malaysia and the United States of military radar tracking and pulses detected by satellites are starting to piece together an extraordinary picture of what may have happened to the plane after it lost contact with civilian air traffic control.
"The fate of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370, and t
Malaysian military radar data made available to the US, but not yet released publically, indicates the aircraft made dramatic changes in altitude after a sharp change in course once air traffic control lost the plane early on March 8.
The aircraft appears to have flown across peninsular Malaysia then northwest toward the Indian Andaman islands along flight waypoints, indicating whoever was piloting the jetliner had aviation experience.
Search efforts are now focused on two massive swathes of water in the Bay of Bengal and Indian Ocean.
Reuters reports: "Faint electronic signals sent to satellites from a missing Malaysian jetliner show it may have been flown thousands of miles off course before running out of fuel over the Indian Ocean, a source familiar with official U.S. assessments said.
"Investigators are focusing increasingly on foul play, as evidence suggests the plane turned sharply west after its disappearance and - with its communications systems deliberately switched off - continued to fly for perhaps several hours.
"'What we can say is we are looking at sabotage, with hijack still on the cards,' said a senior Malaysian police official.
The Associated Press cited an unnamed Malaysian government official as saying investigators had 'conclusively' established that one of the pilots or someone else with flying experience had hijacked the plane. That report could not immediately be confirmed with officials in Malaysia.
"Analysis in Malaysia and the United States of military radar tracking and pulses detected by satellites are starting to piece together an extraordinary picture of what may have happened to the plane after it lost contact with civilian air traffic control.
"The fate of Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370, and t