It WAS hijacked: Malaysian official says it's CONCLUSIVE jet carrying 239 was seized by individual or group 'with significant flying experience' as PM admits tracking was 'deliberately' disabled
- Officials confirmed missing plane was hijacked by one or several people
- Could have turned off communication system and steered it off-course
- Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak refused to confirm the reports
- Investigators working to establish motive and where plane was taken
- Reports suggest home of one of the pilots is currently being searched
Investigators say the missing Malaysia Airlines jet was hijacked and steered off-course.
A Malaysian government official said people with significant flying experience could have turned off the flight's communication devices.
The representative said that hijacking theory was now 'conclusive', and police are now believed to be searching the home of pilot, Capt Zaharie Ahmad Shah.
While Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak refused to confirm that flight MH370 was taken over, he admitted 'deliberate action' on board the plane resulted in it changing course and losing connection with ground crews.
The plane's communication system was switched off as it headed East over the Malaysian seaboard and its last known location was six-and-a-half hours later than first thought.
Malaysian Prime Minister Najib Razak on Saturday refused to confirm reports the plane was 'hijacked'
Conclusion: Malaysian officials say flight MH370 could have been
hijacked by one or several people with flying experience and
deliberately
diverted
Changing course: Officials said radar data suggests the plane may have
turned back and crossed over the Malaysian peninsula after setting out
Re-routed: Malaysian officials have said radar data suggests the plane
may have turned back and crossed over the Malaysian peninsula toward the
Andaman Islands after setting out on a northeastern path toward the
Chinese capitalIt is not yet clear where the plane was taken, however Mr Razak said the most recent satellite data suggests the plane could have headed to one of two possible flight corridors.
One
possibility is the northern corridor, which stretches from the border
of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to northern Thailand, while the other is
the southern
corridor from Indonesia to the Southern Indian Ocean.
More...
- U.S. says missing Malaysian jet could be 'act of PIRACY': Evidence shows plane changed direction and climbed thousands of feet 'under command of a pilot' after tracking devices were manually disabled
- Pilots who were flying missing Malaysian jet under police investigation amid fears the plane was hijacked by people with aviation training
However, if it was diverted into the Indian Ocean, the task of the search teams becomes more difficult, as there are hundreds of uninhabited islands and the water reaches depths of around 23,000ft.
US investigators have also not ruled out the possibility that the passengers are being held at an unknown location and suggest that faint 'pings' were being transmitted for several hours after the flight lost contact with the ground.
Malaysian authorities and others are urgently investigating the two pilots and 10 crew members, along with the 227 passengers on board.
Police have already said they are looking into the psychological background of the pilots, Ahmad Shah, 53, and Fariq Abdul Hamid, 27, their family life and connections.
Devastated: Kamariah Sharif, a relative of one of the missing passengers
gets emotional before the announcement the plane was hijacked
Another relative gives a statement to the media following the press conferenceMr Razak added authorities have not ruled out any possibilities in the international search for the plane, which now involves 14 countries, 43 ships and 58 aircraft.
'Clearly the search has entered a new phase. Over the last seven days, we have followed every lead and looked into every possibility,' Mr Razak said. 'For family and friends (of the passengers), we hope this new information brings us one step closer to finding the plane.'
The Boeing 777's communication with the ground was severed just under one hour into the flight on March 8 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.
It has now been confirmed the plane turned back and crossed over the Malaysian peninsula after setting out on a northeastern path toward the Chinese capital.
Experts
say signals from the plane shows it then continued flying for at least
five hours in an unknown direction. The plane's messaging system and
transponder were both deliberately cut off and with them all hopes of
further tracking the plane.
American officials had been briefing Friday that the investigation was looking at
'human intervention' - one source even said it may have
been 'an act of piracy'.The disabling of the Boeing 777's transponder and messaging system occurred around 12 minutes apart. Such a gap would be unlikely in the case of an in-flight catastrophe and gave authorities the clearest indication to date someone on-board was behind it.
The motive of the hijack is still not clear. No demands have been made and no groups have publicly claimed involvement in the disappearance.
Gone: The Malaysian Airways jet (not pictured) vanished on March 8 after
communication was severed just one hour into a flight from Kuala Lumpur
to Beijing
Search effort: Colonel Do Duc Minh (far left) Vietnam Air Force's 370
Division's Chief of Staff, points at a map as he speaks to reporters
about search flights aimed at finding the missing Malaysia Airlines
plane
Some experts have said that pilot
suicide may be the most likely explanation for the disappearance, as was
suspected in a SilkAir crash during a flight from Singapore to Jakarta
in 1997 and an EgyptAir flight in 1999.
A P-8A Poseidon, the most advanced long range anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare aircraft in the world, will arrive Saturday. It has a nine-member crew and has advanced surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, the department of defense said in a statement.
The USS Kidd arrived in the Strait of Malacca late Friday afternoon and
will be searching in the Andaman Sea, and into the Bay of Bengal
Expanded search: A Royal Malaysian Air Force Navigator captain Izam
Fareq Hassan (right) talks with his team members onboard a Malaysian Air
Force CN235 aircraft during a search and rescue (SAR) operation
Expanded search: Indonesian Search And Rescue personnel keep a lookout on a rescue ship heading to the Andaman sea
Wanting answers: Relatives of passengers of a missing Malaysia Airlines
plane attend a conference with airline representatives at a hotel in
Beijing, China on Saturday
Exhausted: Relatives of Chinese passengers aboard missing Malaysia
Airlines flight MH370 rests in a room reserved for relatives awaiting
news of the search for the plane
Malaysia has come under fire for what has been described as a 'pretty chaotic' search, with China saying the overall search effort has consequently been mired in confusion after a series of false alarms, rumors and contradictory statements.
Meanwhile, the hijacking news will renew focus on the two pilots at the helm of the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet.
Despite the investigation, Malaysian officials and friends of the pilots have told MailOnline this week that there are no reasons to suspect either the Captain or co-pilot of having personal problems that would have resulted in them taking control of the aircraft.
The only known blot on co-pilot Fariq's character appears to be the time 2011 when he invited two South African women into the cockpit when he and another officer flew a jet from Thailand to Malaysia.
The
already global search effort will now be expanded along the two large
corridors outlined in his speech. It is unclear how resources will be
allocated but the Prime Minister said all the countries within those
areas had been notified of the renewed focus.
The
USS Kidd arrived in the Strait of Malacca late Friday afternoon. It
uses a using a 'creeping-line' search method of following a pattern of
equally spaced parallel lines in an effort to completely cover the area.A P-8A Poseidon, the most advanced long range anti-submarine and anti-surface warfare aircraft in the world, will arrive Saturday. It has a nine-member crew and has advanced surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities, the department of defense said in a statement.
The USS Kidd arrived in the Strait of Malacca late Friday afternoon and
will be searching in the Andaman Sea, and into the Bay of BengalExpanded search: A Royal Malaysian Air Force Navigator captain Izam
Fareq Hassan (right) talks with his team members onboard a Malaysian Air
Force CN235 aircraft during a search and rescue (SAR) operationExpanded search: Indonesian Search And Rescue personnel keep a lookout on a rescue ship heading to the Andaman seaWanting answers: Relatives of passengers of a missing Malaysia Airlines
plane attend a conference with airline representatives at a hotel in
Beijing, China on SaturdayExhausted: Relatives of Chinese passengers aboard missing Malaysia
Airlines flight MH370 rests in a room reserved for relatives awaiting
news of the search for the planeMalaysia has come under fire for what has been described as a 'pretty chaotic' search, with China saying the overall search effort has consequently been mired in confusion after a series of false alarms, rumors and contradictory statements.
Meanwhile, the hijacking news will renew focus on the two pilots at the helm of the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet.
Despite the investigation, Malaysian officials and friends of the pilots have told MailOnline this week that there are no reasons to suspect either the Captain or co-pilot of having personal problems that would have resulted in them taking control of the aircraft.
The only known blot on co-pilot Fariq's character appears to be the time 2011 when he invited two South African women into the cockpit when he and another officer flew a jet from Thailand to Malaysia.
Under investigation: Pilots Zaharie Ahmad Shah, 53 (Top) and Fariq
Abdul Hamid, 27 (Down) are being investigated and could have their
homes searched
In the days since the flight went missing, it has emerged that Shah was so passionate about flying he has is own flight simulator at home.
As the search continued for the missing Boeing 777, military radar suggested the plane was deliberately flown towards India's Andaman Islands.
Two sources familiar with the investigation said an unidentified aircraft - which investigators believe was flight MH370 - was plotted by military radar following a route between navigational waypoints.
This indicates that it was either being flown by the pilots or someone with knowledge of those waypoints, the sources said.
Support: Thousands of people have written messages of support on a wall
at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur, for passengers on board the missing
Malaysia Airlines plane
Hope: Paper cranes are pasted on a message board for passengers aboard a
missing Malaysia Airlines plane, at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur
The last plot on the military radar's tracking suggested the plane was flying towards India's Andaman Islands, a chain of isles between the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, they said.
Waypoints are geographic locations, worked out by calculating longitude and latitude, that help pilots navigate along established air corridors.
India recently began searching hundreds of uninhabited islands in the Andaman Sea, using heat-seeking devices.
Two Indian air force reconnaissance planes began flying over the islands as a precaution, after they and two naval ships scoured the seas surrounding the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, according to spokesman Col. Harmit Singh of India's Tri-Services Command on the territory.
The archipelago that stretches south of Myanmar contains 572 islands covering an area of 720 by 52 kilometers. Only 37 are inhabited, with the rest covered in dense forests.
Malaysian Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein attended
prayers for passengers and crew of missing Malaysia Airlines flight
MH370 at a mosque near Kuala Lumpur International Airport
India today began searching hundreds of uninhabited islands in the Andaman Sea, using heat-seeking devices, officials said
The focus of search efforts shifted on Thursday from the South China Sea after the US said 'new information' indicated that Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 may have gone down to the west in the Indian Ocean.
China, which had more than 150 citizens on board the missing plane, has deployed four warships, four coastguard vessels, eight aircraft and trained 10 satellites on a wide search area.
Chinese media have described the ship deployment as the largest Chinese rescue fleet ever assembled.
The Boeing 777 has one of the best safety records of any commercial aircraft in service.
Its only previous fatal crash came on July 6 last year when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 struck a sea wall with its undercarriage on landing in San Francisco. Three people died in the incident.
In the days since the flight went missing, it has emerged that Shah was so passionate about flying he has is own flight simulator at home.
As the search continued for the missing Boeing 777, military radar suggested the plane was deliberately flown towards India's Andaman Islands.
Two sources familiar with the investigation said an unidentified aircraft - which investigators believe was flight MH370 - was plotted by military radar following a route between navigational waypoints.
This indicates that it was either being flown by the pilots or someone with knowledge of those waypoints, the sources said.
Support: Thousands of people have written messages of support on a wall
at a shopping mall in Kuala Lumpur, for passengers on board the missing
Malaysia Airlines planeHope: Paper cranes are pasted on a message board for passengers aboard a
missing Malaysia Airlines plane, at a shopping mall in Kuala LumpurThe last plot on the military radar's tracking suggested the plane was flying towards India's Andaman Islands, a chain of isles between the Andaman Sea and the Bay of Bengal, they said.
Waypoints are geographic locations, worked out by calculating longitude and latitude, that help pilots navigate along established air corridors.
India recently began searching hundreds of uninhabited islands in the Andaman Sea, using heat-seeking devices.
Two Indian air force reconnaissance planes began flying over the islands as a precaution, after they and two naval ships scoured the seas surrounding the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, according to spokesman Col. Harmit Singh of India's Tri-Services Command on the territory.
The archipelago that stretches south of Myanmar contains 572 islands covering an area of 720 by 52 kilometers. Only 37 are inhabited, with the rest covered in dense forests.
Malaysian Acting Transport Minister Hishammuddin Hussein attended
prayers for passengers and crew of missing Malaysia Airlines flight
MH370 at a mosque near Kuala Lumpur International AirportIndia today began searching hundreds of uninhabited islands in the Andaman Sea, using heat-seeking devices, officials saidThe focus of search efforts shifted on Thursday from the South China Sea after the US said 'new information' indicated that Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 may have gone down to the west in the Indian Ocean.
China, which had more than 150 citizens on board the missing plane, has deployed four warships, four coastguard vessels, eight aircraft and trained 10 satellites on a wide search area.
Chinese media have described the ship deployment as the largest Chinese rescue fleet ever assembled.
The Boeing 777 has one of the best safety records of any commercial aircraft in service.
Its only previous fatal crash came on July 6 last year when Asiana Airlines Flight 214 struck a sea wall with its undercarriage on landing in San Francisco. Three people died in the incident.
THREE TYPES OF SIGNALS GIVEN OFF BY PLANES, AND HOW THEY RELATE TO MISSING MH370
The
missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777-200 sent signals to a satellite
for four hours after the aircraft went missing, an indication that it
was still flying for hundreds of miles or more, according to a U.S.
official briefed on the search for the jet.
This raises the possibility that the plane may have flown far from the current search areas.
Here is a look at three types of signals planes give off, and how they relate to the missing jetliner:
TRANSPONDERS
Transponders are electronic devices that automatically identify commercial aircraft within air traffic control radar range and transmit information on the plane's identity, location and altitude to ground radar stations. Beyond radar range, they enable planes to be identified and tracked anywhere in the world by satellite. Transponders can be turned off by pilots.
The missing jet's transponder last communicated with Malaysian civilian radar about an hour after takeoff, when the plane was above the Gulf of Thailand between Malaysia and southern Vietnam.
ACARS
ACARS - or Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System - is a data link system used to transmit short messages such as weather updates and status reports between aircraft and ground stations via radio or satellite.
According to the U.S. official, ACARS messages sent by the missing plane continued after its transponder went silent, although he wasn't certain for how long.
OPERATING DATA SENT VIA SATELLITE
Boeing offers a satellite service that can receive data during a flight on how the aircraft is functioning and relay the information to the plane's home base. The idea is to provide information before the plane lands on whether maintenance work or repairs are needed. Even if an airline does not subscribe to the service, planes still periodically send automated signals - or pings - to the satellite seeking to establish contact.
Malaysia Airlines did not subscribe to the satellite service. The U.S. official said automated pings were received from the jetliner for four hours after it went missing, indicating it probably flew for hundreds of miles beyond its last confirmed sighting on radar.
This raises the possibility that the plane may have flown far from the current search areas.
Here is a look at three types of signals planes give off, and how they relate to the missing jetliner:
TRANSPONDERS
Transponders are electronic devices that automatically identify commercial aircraft within air traffic control radar range and transmit information on the plane's identity, location and altitude to ground radar stations. Beyond radar range, they enable planes to be identified and tracked anywhere in the world by satellite. Transponders can be turned off by pilots.
The missing jet's transponder last communicated with Malaysian civilian radar about an hour after takeoff, when the plane was above the Gulf of Thailand between Malaysia and southern Vietnam.
ACARS
ACARS - or Aircraft Communications Addressing and Reporting System - is a data link system used to transmit short messages such as weather updates and status reports between aircraft and ground stations via radio or satellite.
According to the U.S. official, ACARS messages sent by the missing plane continued after its transponder went silent, although he wasn't certain for how long.
OPERATING DATA SENT VIA SATELLITE
Boeing offers a satellite service that can receive data during a flight on how the aircraft is functioning and relay the information to the plane's home base. The idea is to provide information before the plane lands on whether maintenance work or repairs are needed. Even if an airline does not subscribe to the service, planes still periodically send automated signals - or pings - to the satellite seeking to establish contact.
Malaysia Airlines did not subscribe to the satellite service. The U.S. official said automated pings were received from the jetliner for four hours after it went missing, indicating it probably flew for hundreds of miles beyond its last confirmed sighting on radar.
