веќе на големо се сомневаат во киднапирање. Прашање е од кого, зошто и каде.
Boeing 777 hijackers plunged to 5,000ft and used low altitude 'terrain masking' manoeuvre practised by fighter jets to avoid radar detection
- Boeing 777 may have 'dropped to altitude as low as 5,000ft'
- It had flown at 45,000ft, before possibly going down quickly
- Aviation experts say passengers would have felt it plunging
- Villagers in the north-east of Malaysia say they saw bright lights
Claims today that the missing Malaysian Airlines jet dropped to an altitude of 5,000ft to avoid radar lends credibility to reports by villagers that they saw bright lights and loud noises at about the time the aircraft is thought to have made a 'U-turn'.
Investigators told a Malaysian newspaper that the
Boeing 777 had dropped to a lower altitude to avoid ground radar, using the surrounding terrain as a sonar barrier.
This type of flying is considered to be dangerous and risky, because it places tremendous pressure on the frame of the aircraft - and flying low at night without radar assistance could lead to the plane crashing into trees or mountains.
Investigators told the New Straits Times that they were now convinced the aircraft flow low over Kelantan, which is in the north east - exactly the same area where the villagers and fishermen who saw bright lights in the sky on the night the jet vanished are living.
At least nine people -
fishermen, farmers and villagers - have made reports to police about seeing lights in the sky and some said they heard the loud noise of an engine.
These accounts appear to match the conclusions of investigators who say the jet flew low after making a sharp turn and heading west from its course over the South China Sea.
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370: Runways in Range
(писти во посег кои исполнуваат критериуми, распоредени низ 26 држави. можно е авионот да продолжил да лета уште 2200 наут. миљи од последната позиција)
The unprecedented hunt for a missing Malaysia Airlines jet
expanded northwest to Kazakhstan and south into the desolate reaches of the Indian Ocean after Malaysian authorities concluded the plane was
deliberately diverted by someone with considerable flying experience.
A summary of the latest information on the search for the plane and the investigation into what happened:
LAST COMMUNICATIONS
The Boeing 777's Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System, or ACARS, last transmitted at 1:07 a.m., about 40 minutes after takeoff. ACARS sends information about the jet's engines and other data to the airline. The transponder, which identifies the plane to commercial radar systems, was shut down about 15 minutes later.
The final, reassuring words from the cockpit - 'All right, good night' - were believed to have been spoken by co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid, according to Malaysia Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya.
After its communications ceased, the plane turned west and crossed the Malay Peninsula. Military radar detected it moving along a known flight route until it was several hundred miles (kilometers) offshore.
Even disabled, ACARS emits hourly pulses that are recorded by a satellite, and Flight 370's last 'ping' was sent at 8:11 a.m. The location of the plane could only be determined in a broad arc from the satellite, which places the jet as far north as Kazakhstan in Central Asia or far into the southern Indian Ocean. The plane at that point would have been near the limit of its on-board fuel supply.
THE GEOGRAPHY
Malaysia's government sent diplomatic cables to relevant countries to seek their help with the search and ask for any radar data that might help narrow the task. Twenty-six countries are involved in the search.
The northern search corridor includes countries with busy airspace that likely would have noticed an unidentified aircraft in their territory. China, India and Pakistan are among the nations that say they have seen no sign of the plane.
Australia is leading the search efforts in the southern Indian Ocean. It has sent two AP-3C Orion aircraft, one of which is searching north and west of the Cocos Islands. Two more search aircraft will be deployed by Tuesday.
The southern Indian Ocean is the world's third-deepest and one of the most remote stretches of water in the world, with little radar coverage. Experts say if the plane crashed there, finding the wreckage could take months or longer, if it is found at all. Establishing what happened with any degree of certainty will require evidence from cockpit voice recordings and the flight-data recorders, which are on board the plane.
THE SUSPICIONS
The investigation is focusing on the plane being deliberately diverted by the pilots or someone on board with considerable flying experience. Police seized a flight simulator from the pilot's home on Saturday and also searched the co-pilot's home. Investigators are checking backgrounds of all 227 passengers and 12 crew members, as well as the ground crew, to see if links to terrorists, personal problems or psychological issues could be factors. But authorities are being tight-lipped about what they've learned so far.
THE UNKNOWN
The whereabouts of the plane is only one question still unanswered. The investigators are also considering: If the two pilots were involved in the disappearance, were they working together or alone, or with one or more of the passengers or crew? Did they fly the plane under duress or of their own will? Did one or more of the passengers manage to break into the cockpit or use the threat of violence to gain entry and then seize the plane? And what possible motive could there be for diverting the jet?
Aviation consultant says online flight data suggested the plane experienced a rapid loss of height and change in direction
Missing Malaysian Boeing 777 probably avoided radar detection - media
Missing Malaysian Boeing 777 was
probably trying to avoid detection by radar stations after it dropped off Malaysian military radar screens, and contact with the plane was lost,
said CNN on Sunday, citing a "senior Malaysian government official". The plane may have intentionally been taken along a route designed to avoid radar detection, the source said.
