Report: Radar Detected Missing Plane Hundreds of Miles Off Course
The mystery surrounding the disappearance of a Malaysia Airlines jetliner took a new turn Tuesday when the airline announced it was expanding the search to the Malacca Strait, hundreds of miles from the Boeing 777's last confirmed location.
The Malacca Strait is located between Malaysia's western coast and Indonesia's Sumatra island which is the opposite side of Malaysia from the plane's last known position recorded by civilian authorities.
To reach the busy shipping lane, the plane would have had to cross over the country.
Flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing vanished early Saturday, less than an hour after takeoff, with 239 people on board, without sending a distress signal. Authorities have said the plane might have attempted to turn back to Kuala Lumpur before dropping off radar.
The Associated Press reported the Malaysian military has radar data that shows the jetliner changed course and made it to the Malacca Strait, according to a senior military official. He also said the plane was believed to be flying low and did not transmit signals detectable by civilian radar.
Malaysia's civil aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said the search continues “on both sides” of the country and did not confirm the country's western coast was now the focus of the search.
No apparent terror link
The head of Interpol says the jet's disappearance does not appear to be related to terrorism. However, the director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency said Tuesday that terrorism could not be ruled out.
"You cannot discount any theory,"' CIA Director John Brennan said in Washington.
Interpol Secretary-General Ronald Noble says new information about two Iranian men who used stolen passports to board the plane makes terrorism a less likely explanation for the jet's disappearance.
The international police agency released photos showing the two boarding the plane at the same time. They are identified as Pouri Nourmohammadi, 19, and Delavar Seyedmohammaderza, 29.
Malaysian Police Inspector General Khalid Tan Sri says the 19 year old was likely trying to migrate to Germany.
"We have been checking his background. We have also checked him with other police organizations on his profile, and we believe that he is not likely to be a member of any terrorist group," the inspector told reporters. "And we believe that he is trying to migrate to Germany."
Khalid said Nourmohammadi's mother knew he was traveling on a stolen passport.
The other man's identity is still under investigation. But the development reduces the likelihood they were working together as part of a terror plot.
Meanwhile, an extensive review of all of those on board continues.
Khalid says authorities are looking into four possible scenarios in connection with the plane's disappearance: hijacking, sabotage, personal disputes and the psychological condition of those on board.
"There may be somebody on the flight who has bought huge sums of insurance. Who wants the family to gain from it. Or somebody who owes so much money and you know," he said, adding that they are looking at all possibilities.
Air Malaysia says it is in negotiations regarding financial aid with relatives of the Chinese passengers on board.
Cockpit visitors
Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines is also looking into an Australian television report that the co-pilot of the missing plane once invited two women into the cockpit during a flight.
Jonti Roos said she and her friend stayed in the cockpit during the one-hour flight on Dec. 14, 2011, from Phuket, Thailand, to Kuala Lumpur. She also said the crew smoked during the flight.
The airline said it wouldn't comment until its investigation is complete.
fuente: La Voz de América, http://www.voanews.com/content/mystery-deepens-as-search-for-missing-plane-expands/1868843.html
The Malacca Strait is located between Malaysia's western coast and Indonesia's Sumatra island which is the opposite side of Malaysia from the plane's last known position recorded by civilian authorities.
To reach the busy shipping lane, the plane would have had to cross over the country.
Flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing vanished early Saturday, less than an hour after takeoff, with 239 people on board, without sending a distress signal. Authorities have said the plane might have attempted to turn back to Kuala Lumpur before dropping off radar.
The Associated Press reported the Malaysian military has radar data that shows the jetliner changed course and made it to the Malacca Strait, according to a senior military official. He also said the plane was believed to be flying low and did not transmit signals detectable by civilian radar.
Malaysia's civil aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman said the search continues “on both sides” of the country and did not confirm the country's western coast was now the focus of the search.
No apparent terror link
The head of Interpol says the jet's disappearance does not appear to be related to terrorism. However, the director of the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency said Tuesday that terrorism could not be ruled out.
"You cannot discount any theory,"' CIA Director John Brennan said in Washington.
Interpol Secretary-General Ronald Noble says new information about two Iranian men who used stolen passports to board the plane makes terrorism a less likely explanation for the jet's disappearance.
The international police agency released photos showing the two boarding the plane at the same time. They are identified as Pouri Nourmohammadi, 19, and Delavar Seyedmohammaderza, 29.
Malaysian Police Inspector General Khalid Tan Sri says the 19 year old was likely trying to migrate to Germany.
"We have been checking his background. We have also checked him with other police organizations on his profile, and we believe that he is not likely to be a member of any terrorist group," the inspector told reporters. "And we believe that he is trying to migrate to Germany."
Khalid said Nourmohammadi's mother knew he was traveling on a stolen passport.
The other man's identity is still under investigation. But the development reduces the likelihood they were working together as part of a terror plot.
Meanwhile, an extensive review of all of those on board continues.
Khalid says authorities are looking into four possible scenarios in connection with the plane's disappearance: hijacking, sabotage, personal disputes and the psychological condition of those on board.
"There may be somebody on the flight who has bought huge sums of insurance. Who wants the family to gain from it. Or somebody who owes so much money and you know," he said, adding that they are looking at all possibilities.
Air Malaysia says it is in negotiations regarding financial aid with relatives of the Chinese passengers on board.
Cockpit visitors
Meanwhile, Malaysia Airlines is also looking into an Australian television report that the co-pilot of the missing plane once invited two women into the cockpit during a flight.
Jonti Roos said she and her friend stayed in the cockpit during the one-hour flight on Dec. 14, 2011, from Phuket, Thailand, to Kuala Lumpur. She also said the crew smoked during the flight.
The airline said it wouldn't comment until its investigation is complete.
fuente: La Voz de América, http://www.voanews.com/content/mystery-deepens-as-search-for-missing-plane-expands/1868843.html
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