The three major theories on what happened to missing flight MH370 after decade-long mystery

The decade-long mystery of missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 remains one of the deadliest cases of aircraft disappearance.

227 passengers and 12 crew members on board the Boeing 777 were presumed dead after travelling from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing on 8 March, 2014.

MH370 lost contact with air traffic control at 1:19am, over the South China Sea, while investigators believe the plane deviated from its planned route and flew west for several hours before vanishing.

The new search for MH370

MH370’s final communication heard in chilling cockpit audio
Credit: CNN
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Southampton-based marine robotics firm, Ocean Infinity, is resuming its mission in a new area in the southern Indian Ocean.

If the company – who ended a previous search in 2018 – is able to locate significant wreckage, it will be awarded $70 million (£56 million), according to Malaysia’s transport minister Anthony Loke.

“Our responsibility and obligation and commitment is to the next of kin,” Loke said.

“We hope this time will be positive, that the wreckage will be found and give closure to the families.”

MH370 theory 1: Hijacking

There are main three theories on what happened to the missing MH370 flight (Rob Griffith-Pool/Getty Images)

There are main three theories on what happened to the missing MH370 flight (Rob Griffith-Pool/Getty Images)

There are some suggestions that the incident was an ‘act of war’, as mentioned in Netflix’s 2023 documentary MH370: The Plane That Disappeared.

Aviation journalist Jeff Wise noted that another incident involving a Malaysia Airlines Flight could have been the result of MH370 being hijacked.

MH17 was scheduled to fly from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur on 17 July 2014, before it was shot down by Russian-backed forces.

All 283 passengers and 15 crew were killed, as a surface-to-air missile in Ukraine shot the plane.

In terms of MH370, however, Wise suspected that international spies were on board the flight and went into the electronics bay underneath the plane to operate the computers which control the plane’s flight system.

MH370 theory 2: The pilot was involved

The wing flap found on Pemba Island, Tanzania, which has been identified a missing part of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 (Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

The wing flap found on Pemba Island, Tanzania, which has been identified a missing part of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 (Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

When taking a look into the pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah, Wise speculates that he purposely took down the plane.

Instead of heading to Beijing as planned, the journalist thinks Shah may have turned the aircraft around to head south so it would eventually run out of fuel and crash.

But following further evaluation, Wise was more convinced by theory number one above.

MH370 theory 3: Plane interception

Last, but not least, is the theory set out by French journalist Florence De Changy.

In the Netflix doc, she believed that it was NATO or US Air Force planes with AWACS (Airborne Warning and Control System), who ‘jammed’ the plane’s communication system.

This was because they, allegedly, picked up that there was suspicious cargo on board.

And in the third episode of the series, De Changy says that this led to the aircraft getting ‘lost’, which would have been the perfect opportunity for interception.

“More than anything, we want to pull the hidden truths about MH370 out from the carpet under which they’ve been swept, and remind people that this is still a story with no ending, a mystery that hasn’t been solved, that somebody out there knows more than the world has been told,” producer, Harry Hewland, said.

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MH370: The Plane That Disappeared is available to watch on Netflix now.

Featured Image Credit: Netflix

Topics: NetflixMH370TravelWorld News

Experiment could be 'key' to solving decade-long mystery of missing MH370 plane

Experiment could be ‘key’ to solving decade-long mystery of missing MH370 plane

An aviation expert is set to carry out an experiment that could tell us a lot about the missing MH370 aircraft

Joshua Nair

Joshua Nair

The mystery surrounding the disappearance of missing flight MH370 continues to rage on, as experts are still weighing in and investigating the peculiar case.

It’s been over 10 years since the fateful date when the most famous aviation mystery in modern history took place.

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 set off on its journey from Kuala Lumpur to the Chinese capital of Beijing on 8 March 2014, but bizarrely changed its pathing, flying off course before disappearing off the radar without a trace.

Since then, there have been several theories and bits of evidence that have been uncovered in relation to the case, though an explanation of the disappearance is still needed, as teams are continuing to investigate, worldwide.

MH370’s final communication heard in chilling cockpit audio
Credit: CNN
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It is sadly presumed that all 229 on board (227 passengers, 12 crew members) are dead following the mystery, after the Boeing 777 sent zero distress calls as it veered off its flight path, flying in a different direction for another seven hours.

People have long wondered about what might have happened onboard that flight 10 years ago, as the search for the plane’s black box flight recorders continue.

Many believe that the answer to their questions lie within the elusive box, and though debris has been recovered across the Indian Ocean, the full wreckage has not been found.

It has long been believed that the plane crashed into the Southern Indian Ocean, and following a search over 46,332 square miles, a few fragments were found on a beach in Saint Denis, Reunion Island back in July 2015.

But now, one aviation expert thinks he might be able to crack the code.

He thinks that a new experiment could help in solving the plane's disappearance (Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

He thinks that a new experiment could help in solving the plane’s disappearance (Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

Science journalist and private pilot Jeff Wise is starting an experiment which he thinks could reveal the answer to the aircraft’s crash site.

Labelled the ‘Finding MH370 project’, the aim will be to find if the plane did plunge into the Southern Indian Ocean. But how?

Well, the idea is to place a replica of a piece of debris in the potential crash site, and remotely keeping track of marine growth on the piece.

“It is the most baffling case – most are far more straight forward,” he told Femail.

Wise compared the missing aircraft to another aviation mystery, Air France Flight 447, which also went missing and killed all 228 passengers onboard in 2009.

Wise thinks that his experiment will reveal a lot about MH370 (Netflix)

Wise thinks that his experiment will reveal a lot about MH370 (Netflix)

Its black box was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean in May 2011, with the final report in 2012 finding that mechanical faults and incorrect crew reaction was the cause of the accident.

The aviation expert noted that with flight MH370, its disappearance ‘looks like a case of pilot murder-suicide’ when looking at the details, though this has not been proven.

Wise, who is also the author of the book The Taking Of MH370, highlighted that the outcome of his new experiment could help and point research teams in the direction of what really happened on that doomed March day in 2014.

Featured Image Credit: Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images / Netflix

Topics: MH370ScienceWorld News

Search for missing MH370 flight could be set to resume after new ‘credible’ information discovered

Search for missing MH370 flight could be set to resume after new ‘credible’ information discovered

The underwater search for MH370 looks set to continue, according to the Malaysian Transport Minister

Joshua Nair

Joshua Nair

The underwater search for the elusive missing MH370 flight could be set to continue after new information was revealed.

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 is at the centre of the most famous aviation mystery in modern history, with it being more than 10 years since the aircraft vanished.

On 8 March 2014, the aircraft carrying 239 people set off from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur towards Beijing, China, but in the middle of its journey, it bizarrely changed its path and flew completely off course before disappearing from radars.

Conspiracy theories have run amuck since then, while bits of evidence have been discovered along the way, though an explanation of its disappearance is still missing.

Evidence has been gradually uncovered over the years (Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

Evidence has been gradually uncovered over the years (Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

Teams from all over the world have been investigating the case in the years since, and it looks like the search is continuing.

Malaysia’s Transport Minister, Anthony Loke, spoke in parliament on Tuesday (5 November), revealing that the government is locked in talks with a US-based marine exploration company about restarting the search for the missing aircraft.

They’re called Ocean Infinity and they have proposed a search in the Southern Indian Ocean, off the cost of Western Australia, a 15,000 sq. km area.

Loke said: “Based on the latest information and analysis from experts and researchers, Ocean Infinity’s search proposal is credible and can be considered by the Malaysian government as the flight’s official registrar.”

It is believed that the costs and terms involved are part of a draft agreement being negotiated between the company and the Malaysian government.

Loke added: “Should it be finalised, cabinet approval will be required, and I will make a public announcement.”

The search carried out by Ocean Infinity is said to be a ‘no find, no fee’ agreement.

If the company are able to locate the plane, which has been missing for almost 11 years, they will earn $70 million (£54.28 million).

The aim with the new search is to find the entire aircraft, as opposed to bits of evidence (RICHARD BOUHET/AFP via Getty Images)

The aim with the new search is to find the entire aircraft, as opposed to bits of evidence (RICHARD BOUHET/AFP via Getty Images)

So far, search efforts have been costly, as the initial underwater search in 2014, carried out by Malaysia, China and Australia, spanned a huge 120,000 sq. kilometres in the southern Indian Ocean.

Lasting almost three years and costing an estimated $150 million (£116m), it was called off in January 2017.

Ocean Infinity have searched for the aeroplane in the past, making their first attempt in 2018 on a ‘no find, no fee’ deal as well.

Their search lasted three months, covering 112,000 sq. kilometres north of the first target area.

It has been suggested by defence analyst Dr Lam Choong Wah from Universiti Malaya that Malaysia work with China in the latest search.

He suggested to local publication Strait Times: “As most of the passengers on MH370 were Chinese, Malaysia should not hesitate to collaborate with Beijing.”

Featured Image Credit: Nicolas Economou/NurPhoto via Getty Images / Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images

Topics: MH370World News

Deep-sea explorers hope to find wreckage of missing flight MH370 ten years after it vanished

Deep-sea explorers hope to find wreckage of missing flight MH370 ten years after it vanished

The flight disappeared after departing from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia in 2014

Brenna Cooper

Brenna Cooper

Deep-sea explorers believe they may be able to locate the wreckage of missing MH370 flight, over 10 years after the aircraft vanished.

In the early hours of 8 March, 2014, the Malaysian Airlines flight departed from Kuala Lumpur on a journey north to Beijing, China.

MH370’s final communication heard in chilling cockpit audio
Credit: CNN
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However, MH370 would later vanish from the flight radar after takeoff, leading to one of the biggest mysteries in modern aviation history.

The plane’s last known location was in the Andaman Sea region after being picked up on a military radar.

Exactly what happened next isn’t known, however, the Air Accidents Investigation Branch (AAIB) would later conclude that MH370 most likely crashed into the Southern Indian Ocean, around 2,500km west of the Australian city of Perth, with all 239 passengers perishing in the accident.

Extensive searches of possible crash locations, yielded aircraft debris, while an absence of an official explanation for the plane’s crash has led to a number of theories doing the rounds online.

However, one US deep-sea explorer believes he will be able to solve the mystery.

Debris identified as MH370 have since washed up in the ocean. (Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Debris identified as MH370 have since washed up in the ocean. (Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Tony Romeo, Deep Sea Vision CEO, made headlines in January this year, claiming that he’d been able to locate the remains of Amelia Earhart‘s plane after it vanished in 1937.

Now he’s claiming he could do the same thing to find the missing MH370.

Speaking in an interview with Australian TV show 60 minutes back in March, former Air Force intelligence officer Romeo said he believed Deep Sea Vision would be capable of making a breakthrough in the case.

Explaining that he would do this by sending one of these underwater Hugin 6000 drones to the ocean-floor, Romeo said: “I think we can [find flight MH370]. I feel like we’ve proved our credibility, we’ve proved our competence. We’ve proved our ability to take equipment and use novel techniques.

Romero’s company has since been said to be preparing a proposal to submit to the Malaysian government for their search.

“I believe that the Malaysian government wants answers,” he continued.

“I refuse to believe that they do not want a huge accident, a huge crash like this to go unresolved. It just isn’t fair, it wouldn’t be fair to the families.”

Relatives of MH370 passengers commemorate their missing loved ones. (ARIF KARTONO/AFP via Getty Images)

Relatives of MH370 passengers commemorate their missing loved ones. (ARIF KARTONO/AFP via Getty Images)

Going on to explain how the drone would work at the bottom of the ocean, Romero added: “It [the drone] flies at 50 metres above the seafloor and it just goes back and forth, back and forth, back and forth.

“Big eyes, looking at everything it can see, sucks and stores data, comes back up to the surface, we pluck a thumb drive into it, pull the data out, and we watch it on a computer exactly what it looked at.”

Featured Image Credit: (Photo by ARIF KARTONO/AFP via Getty Images/Photo by Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Topics: World NewsMH370

Mystery of missing MH370 plane may be solved after sensor picks up vital sound

Mystery of missing MH370 plane may be solved after sensor picks up vital sound

Researchers think that a new method may lead them to the answers behind the MH370 mystery

Joshua Nair

Joshua Nair

The mystery surrounding the infamous MH370 plane may finally have been solved following some new, and potentially vital, findings.

It’s been over 10 years since one of the most famous aviation mysteries in world history occurred.

On 8 March 2014, Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 was planning to make the journey from the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur to the Chinese capital of Beijing, but instead mysteriously veered off course and disappeared with no explanation.

Despite some advancements in the investigation, a clear explanation of the flight’s disappearance is still missing, despite the ongoing efforts from teams around the world.

MH370’s final communication heard in chilling cockpit audio
Credit: CNN
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There were 227 passengers and 12 crew members onboard, all of whom have been presumed dead following the tragic incident.

It is well reported that the aircraft sent no distress calls, as it was later found that the Boeing 777 veered completely off its flight path, flying on an unknown path for another seven hours.

People still theorise about what may have happened on that fateful March day in 2014, with many believing that the answer lies on the plane’s black box flight recorders, which are still missing.

However, investigators now believe that an underwater pressure monitor may have aided in the search for the doomed aircraft.

The Malaysian government stated earlier this year that the flight ‘ended in the Southern Indian Ocean’, despite the fact that it has never been found.

Researchers think we may be closer to solving the mystery of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. (Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Researchers think we may be closer to solving the mystery of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. (Adli Ghazali/Anadolu Agency/Getty Images)

Researchers at Cardiff University have gone through over 100 hours of underwater audio from historical aircraft accidents and a submarine disappearance, and have stumbled across something that could change everything in the investigation.

They have pinpointed an underwater signal that may have been caused by the impact of the Boeing plane hitting the waves upon landing.

Dr. Usama Kadri, a mathematician and engineer, has explained that a network of hydrophones that have been used to monitor pressure changes in the ocean as part of a nuclear explosion detection system could be the way to uncover the MH370 mystery.

Together with his team, he analysed the data from the time that the aircraft was said to have vanished over the Southern Indian Ocean, and found one unidentified event in an area known as the Seventh Arc, that was picked up at the Leeuiwn station.

“A 200-tonne aircraft crashing at a speed of 200 metres per second would release the kinetic energy equivalent to a small earthquake. It would be large enough to be recorded by hydrophones thousands of kilometres away,” Dr. Kadri wrote in The Conversation.

Only small parts of the wreckage have been uncovered. (Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

Only small parts of the wreckage have been uncovered. (Mohd Samsul Mohd Said/Getty Images)

He continued: “Given the sensitivity of the hydrophones, it’s highly unlikely that a large aircraft impacting the ocean surface wouldn’t leave a detectable pressure signature, particularly on nearby hydrophones.

“But unfavourable ocean conditions could potentially dampen or obscure such a signal.”

He said that the search as a whole would need to be looked at again to determine if these signals were directly related to the missing flight MH370.

Researchers have suggested a number of controlled underwater explosions to see if they can get a more exact location of the plane’s wreckage.

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