Alexei shirinkin

On Sunday, 20 April, Discovery Channel will show the program " The Missing Boeing: in search of the weakest link." The authors have made a selection of the most discussed explanations of the most mysterious plane crash in modern history. Each of these hypotheses will be discussed and analysed by technical experts invited on to the program.

1. Operations of a third state: this hypothesis started to be actively discussed after a flight simulator was found on the computer of Zechariah Shah, the crew commander of the missing aircraft. Its program included a flight plan to the island of Diego Garcia where there is a US military base. On the one hand, information from satellites eliminates this theory, but what if it had been possible to trick the tracking system?

2. Cabin depressurisation: an aviation expert from the University of Central Queensland, Ron Bishop says depressurisation could have been caused by a fire or other emergency in the cabin. If that was true, then the pilots could have turned the plane back to Malaysia and tried to make an emergency landing. If subjected to smoke and/or depressurization it is possible they may have lost consciousness, and the plane flew on autopilot until the plane ran out of fuel, and then fell into the ocean.

3. Fire due to a short circuit: if this theory is correct, then the pilots will most likely have turned the aircraft to the west to make a landing at the nearest airport. But the attempt was not successful.

4. Hijacking by terrorists: this theory was analysed especially carefully, but no evidence was found. Not one suspect or any group has claimed responsibility. It’s not yet possible to exclude this theory, but the question arises: why fly for seven hours in an unknown direction, losing the opportunity to seize hostages and ransom?

5. Control was seized from earth: such a hijacking is technically feasible, because this type of aircraft is capable of flying by remote control. But who could have done this and for what reason? No body has claimed responsibility for this yet.

6. Pilot suicide: Captain Shah and co-pilot Farik Hamid were checked out by special services, so this proposition seems unlikely. And then, why fly to distant lands before committing suicide?

7. Incidents on board: maybe there was a fight on the plane between crew members or passengers. This could explain the sharp drop in altitude after climbing to 14, 000 meters. Perhaps the crew lost control of the situation on board?

8. Bomb: this version is unlikely – US or other military satellites could have been able to detect a bomb on board. The hypothesis has been put forward, but is barely being seriously considered.

9. Explosion: the veracity of this theory is just as questionable as that of the bomb version - the explosion would be immediately detected by military satellites.

10. Theft of the plane: some speculate that the Boeing has been kidnapped for preparing a terrorist attack. Others argue that the attackers wanted to steal the cargo on board. An argument against the first theory is that there are thousands of other aircraft that would be easier to seize. The second theory can be refuted by the simple fact that that there was nothing particularly valuable on board; tropical mango fruit is not such a tempting cargo that it warrants hijacking a Boeing.

FACTS

The Boeing 777 was lost over the South China Sea on 8 March 2014

· Flight MH370 was in progress from Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia) to Beijing (China).

· The aircraft is owned by Malaysia Airlines, operating jointly with China Southern Airlines. The search for the wreckage from the aircraft has not yielded results.

· On 24 March, Malaysian authorities announced that the aircraft had apparently crashed and none of the people on board had survived. Payment of compensation was begun.

· The search for wreckage continues. An automatically controlled deepwater apparatus " Bluefin-21” is working at the supposed site of the catastrophe.

7 April: Fate of Malaysian Boeing MH370: facts, speculation, theories

An expert in the field of air safety –about the mysterious disappearance of the airliner

Searches for the Malaysian Boeing 777 that went missing almost a month ago have not yet yielded any results. Sergey Melnichenko, General Director of the Consultancy and Analysis Agency " Aviation Safety" (KAA “Aviation Safety”) and a member of the World Aviation Safety Foundation shares his theories and arguments.

A few days ago, an American naval officer said the Malaysian Airlines plane may lie at such a depth that it cannot be found. Earlier, his name had not appeared at all in relation to the search, so we were somewhat surprised that a well known British newspaper had positioned his opinion immediately after the words of the Defence Minister and of the Acting Minister of Civil Aviation of Malaysia that the searches will continue until the plane is found.

What's this? The international community is being prepared for the circumstance that the mystery of flight MH370’s disappearance will remain unresolved? It is surprising that this happened against the background of a second wave of demonstrations by relatives of Chinese passengers, demanding of Malaysia that it disclose the conduct of investigations and explains its actions.

Initial payments have commenced to the relatives of passengers, HOWEVER, NO ONE HAS ISSUED A DEATH CERTIFICATE. Insurance companies are starting to consolidate funds for insurance coverage, but there is no way to quantify the grief caused by the loss of relatives and friends, and the losses incurred by society as a result of a reduced level of confidence that one will be found and rescued.