This is an article I wrote a couple of days ago for Asia Times Online:
It has been a sight that Malaysians are unaccustomed to – senior ministers and officials shifting uncomfortably and bristling in delivering curt responses to journalists trying to extract more information about the still unresolved March 8 disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines jetliner destined for China.
Could this be a breakthrough? A number of objects have been spotted 2500km south-west of Perth; the largest one is 24m long.
The distance from Perth to Penang is 4461 km or 2772 miles. Flying time from Penang to Perth would be about five and a half hours assuming an average commercial airline speed of 500mph and depending on wind speeds. Then there is the added distance to reach the south-west of Perth. So if this was the plane, it could have been in the area after 8.00am, but it may not have had enough fuel to reach that area.
Sad, distressing scenes before the press briefing in KL today. A couple of distraught Chinese relatives demanding more information and trying to speak to journalists were carried away by police.
After 10 days, the Thai air force has finally revealed that its radar at Surat Thani detected a plane that diverted from its route and flew over Butterworth – although it has not yet been confirmed if the plane was indeed MH370.
Update (19 March): Press statement by the Maldives National Defence Force:
The Maldives National Defence Force (MNDF) has been monitoring the Maldives region with special attention since the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 on 8th March 2014.
Based on the monitoring up to date, no indication of flight MH370 has been observed on any military radar’s in the country. Furthermore, the data of radars at Maldives airports have also been analyzed and shows no indication of the said flight.
The MNDF will continue to render any assistance required by the Maldives Police Service and international authorities on the search for the missing flight and related issues.
Meanwhile, the Maldives Police said on its website it was looking into the reports of sightings of a plane above Kudahuvadhoo.
Original post (18 March):
The leading news portal in the Maldives, Haveeru Online, reports that residents of the remote island of Kuda Huvadhoo in Dhaal Atoll say they witnessed a “low flying jumbo jet” roar across the area on the morning of 8 March.
The investigating team have found five runways of at least 1000m in length on a simulator taken away from the home of Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, local newspaper Berita Harian has reported.
A lot of people are at a loss in trying to explain what happened to MH370. The various official explanations seem vague – with only a bare minimum of details provided – and even misleading.
The Malaysian Air Force radar in Penang, said to be corroborated by satellite, detected what they believe to be Flight 370 flying westwards but strangely, the Indonesian Air Force said that its radar in Aceh did not detect MH370 over the Straits of Malacca, according to the Jakarta Post (14 March). Neither did Thai radar.
The Indonesian radar in Lhokseumawe, Aceh reportedly has a coverage of 240 nautical miles or 445km, whereas the distance to Penang is 200 nautical miles (370km).
Look at point no. 8 in particular:
Malaysia is presently not in a position to immediately sign and ratify the Convention Against Torture (CAT).
That says a lot, doesn’t it. What does it tell you?
Najib says the plane was believed to be flying along either of two flight corridors:
– From northern Thailand to the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, or
– From Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean.
Last satellite communication with the plane was at 8.11am. (Earlier it was reported that the aircraft had enough fuel to last until 8.30am.)