missing plane

[cromwell]

Are you sure you've looked behind the rhubarb?

[Aggers]

I never thought of that -I'll have a quick look now.

[Kaz]

[TheOstrich]

Anyone checked if Tiddleystan Airlines have suddenly acquired a spiffing new Boeing 777?

[Kaz]

This is an interesting theory, by an experienced pilot, and seems possible.......

[Workingman]

It's fine, except that......

The aircraft's original heading took it over the Malaysian coast near to Kuala Terrengganu and out over the Gulf of Thailand when it was lost to ACARS and air traffic, though it was known (later) to turn left. Malaysian military picked it up on a heading of westsouthwest, say 250 to 260, over Kota Bharu i.e. towards Penang and on into the Straits of Malacca: (see Di's post). At around that time the Chinese claimed to have seen the plane on a heading of 330, or 333, which is northnorthwest.

Now, Penang is south of Pulau Langkwai. The runway at Langkwai runs 03 to 21, or northnortheast to southsouthwest. If the plane was intended to head for Langkwai it would have turned north and at some point been on a heading close to 330 before making a further turn to the northeast to line up with the runway. Whichever way it is looked at the plane would have been heading in a general northern direction, not south, as is claimed.

It might, however, never have completed those final few turns and remained heading west(ish) in the general direction of the Somali/Kenyan coast of Africa.

The fire scenarios work, the directions do not.

[meriad]

I was just going to post the same article Kaz; a friend had it on FB

I wonder when the truth will be known.... for the families of all those onboard; passengers and crew, I hope it's sometime soon

[Kaz]

I see what you mean Frank, it just all gets more and more complicated

Me too Ria, it must be horrendous for them

[Workingman]

It must be hell on earth for the poor families. Not only has the performance of the Malaysian government been appalling, but every new piece of evidence appears to contradict the last one, which has led to the proliferation of all these theories.

Today the Thai military says that it had the plane on radar over the Malacca Straits and Andaman Sea, but that it never entered Thai airspace. There are also reports that the residents of the Maldives saw the plane on the morning of its disappearance, heading west - both can't be right.

[pederito1]

Dreadful for all those poor people missing and presumed dead and for their relatives. Only one thing we and probably the authorities too can be sure of and that is it must have come down somewhere within the radius of its fuel. If hijacked you would think one of the pilots would punch in the code and fighters would be scrambled.