Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370: New Revelations That Could Determine the Fate of the Missing Jetliner
A week after the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 has gone missing, new revelations by the Prime Minister Najib Razak of Malaysia have been exposed to the public during a press conference on March 15, providing a much clearer sequence of events about the fate of the missing jetliner, according to CNN. The new information explains what could have really transpired between the intervals that the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 took off up to the last identified sighting of the jetliner.
Based on the new information, the experts were able to reenact the crucial moments of the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 according to CNN's aviation and airline correspondent Richard Quest.
Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System (ACARS) were turned off
When the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 took off from Kuala Lumpur en route to Beijing on March 8 at 12:41 am, all the tracking systems were reportedly still working. Then several minutes after takeoff, the ACARS was turned off just before the jetliner hovered above the east shoreline of the Malaysian Peninsula. Mr Razak stated that the exact time that the ACARS was turned off is not known.
Mr Quest explained that turning off the ACARS is something that could not be done easily. It requires someone to have ample knowledge to do it because ACARS is the jetliner's computer that gathers data and information about the plane as well as the pilot's performance. It can be compared to the computers attached to cars that keep track of the engine performance and even oil levels too.
"If the flight were hijacked or a target of terrorism, cutting off ACARS would be a strategic move because the system reports to satellites anything being done to the aircraft," said Mr Quest.
Transponder was turned off
After the ACARS was shut off, the transponder was disabled. It is the device the sends information to the radar systems that reveals the flight number, altitude, speed, and direction of the jetliner. Mr Razak said that the transponder was shut off after the ACARS has been disabled. It was the time that air traffic controllers lost communication as the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was flying between Malaysia and Vietnam. Mr Quest said that this was already an alarming situation because the jetliner was flying incognito. It was there but it was not revealing any information.
"The air traffic controller should notice."
"I suppose it would cause alarm because the information about a plane that you're monitoring all of sudden disappears," he added.
Final words from the cockpit
"All right, good night," were reportedly the final words heard from the cockpit, according to Malaysian civil aviation officer Zulazri Mohd Ahnuar. However, the identity of the person who uttered those words remain vague.
"'All right, good night' is a pleasantry at the end of radio communication," said Mr Quest.
The voice check-in was made as the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 leaves the Malaysian territory and enters the Vietnamese territory, but it was not known whether the pilots had any communication with Vietnamese air traffic controllers.
Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 was seen flying off-course
The data from the military radar showed that the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was flying off its original path. Mr Razak said that the jetliner glided in the western direction above the Malaysian Peninsula. For this reason, the search has now expanded into the Indian Ocean. Mr. Quest said that the Malaysian military is now providing raw data.
Satellite tracked the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 at 8:11 am
Mr Razak said that the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was tracked by a satellite seven hours after it took off. The Malaysian prime minister confirmed that the jetliner was indeed the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. The U.S. National Transportation Safety Board and Federal Aviation Administration, as well as the UK's Air Accidents Investigation Branch agree. However, Mr Razak said that they were unable to verify the exact location of the jetliner.
Current Scenario
Based on the current facts, an individual could have intentionally warded the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 off its flight path. The communications were shut off and the jetliner continued to fly for seven more hours, according to revelations of Mr Razak. Unfortunately, the Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 is still nowhere to be found.
