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.)
Two sources gave Reuters new details on the direction in which the unidentified aircraft was heading:
(It) was following a route between navigational waypoints – indicating it was being flown by someone with aviation training – when it was last plotted on military radar off the country’s northwest coast.
Never before have Malaysian leaders been exposed to such intense global scrutiny – and for many, inside and outside Malaysia, they have not lived up to the exacting standards expected, as this New York Times article suggests.
The Consumers Association of Malaysia and Sahabat Alam Malaysia says they find that the “grandiose” STP2 project not justified and as it will adversely affect the environment, especially the loss of coastal resources.
The API for Port Klang soared overnight to reach 352 at 7.00am while Banting recorded a similar rise to touch 316, according to the Department of the Environment, Malaysia.
Despite the Malaysian government denying a Wall Street Journal report that the plane was transmitting data after the last transponder signal, CNN reports that US officials maintain that the information from the airplane’s data system was being actively pursued in the plane investigation.
Analysts from U.S. intelligence, the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have concluded that pings sent to a satellite hours after the plane’s last transponder signal likely came from the missing aircraft, the senior U.S. official said.
More bad news. As the Port Klang API hit a very unhealthy 275 at 8.00pm today while Banting crept up to 215. Selangor has urged school principals around Klang to use their discretion to temporarily close schools after consulting with the Department of Education.
Engine data suggest Malaysia flight was airborne long after radar disappearance, reports the Wall Street Journal. But Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein has denied this. Rolls Royce and Boeing have also said the report was “inaccurate”, according to The Guardian.
At the same time, the compulsory acquisition must not be an excuse to pay excessive compensation to these concessionaires, say Rafizi Ramli, Tony Pua and Dr Dzulkefly Ahmad.