Malaysia Airlines flight goes missing

Latest Signal Not Related to Malaysia Airlines Flight 370

Australian authorities discounted the probability of a signal picked up during an underwater search on Thursday as coming from Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 and resumed their focus on detecting new transmissions from the plane's black boxes before they run out of batteries.

Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston, who is leading the multinational operation, said the search would continue to focus on using listening devices deep below the surface of the southern Indian Ocean for several more days, before deploying a remote-controlled vehicle equipped with cameras to probe the seafloor.

"It is vital to glean as much information as possible while the batteries on the underwater locator beacons may still be active," the former Australian defense chief said in a statement Friday, referring to emergency beacons attached to the missing plane's flight recorders. "On the information I have available to me, there has been no major breakthrough in the search for Flight 370."

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303603904579494640112249008

Co-pilot of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 made desperate phone call seconds before plane went off radar: report

Fariq Abdul Hamid’s cell phone reportedly connected with a telecommunications tower in the Malaysian city of Penang on March 8. Malaysian authorities are investigating the reports.

Continued at http://www.nydailynews.com/news/wor...made-mid-flight-call-report-article-1.1754309

Here's the source of the story:

Call traced to co-pilot's phone | New Straits Times

A crew member of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 made a desperate call from his mobile phone as the plane was flying low near Penang, the morning it went missing.

The latest breakthrough in the ongoing criminal investigation traced the source of the call to co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid's phone.

The New Straits Times has learnt that investigators are poring over this discovery as they try to piece together what had happened moments before the Boeing 777-22ER twinjet went off the radar, some 200 nautical miles (320km) northwest of Penang on March 8.

It is understood that the aircraft with 239 people on board was flying at an altitude low enough for the nearest telecommunications tower to pick up his phone's signal.

His call, however, ended abruptly, but not before contact was established with a telecommunications sub-station in the state.

However, the NST is unable to ascertain who Fariq was trying to call as sources chose not to divulge details of the investigation. The links that police are trying to establish are also unclear.

Continued at http://www.nst.com.my/nation/general/call-traced-to-co-pilot-s-phone-1.562612

US Navy: Without New Leads, Malaysia Airlines Jet 'Pinger' Search to End in a 'Few More Days' | ABC News

Search teams looking for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 will abandon use of the U.S. Navy’s underwater black box locator in the next few days unless credible new signals are picked up from possible emergency beacons, a U.S. Navy captain said today.

“When the time is right, we’ll say ‘Yes, the beacons have probably stopped transmitting’ and it’s time to shift,” Capt. Mark Matthews told ABC News. That time, he said, is coming in a “few more days.”

“As long as we have a chance to receive another signal from the beacon, we’re going to try. But eventually we’re going to shift to the autonomous underwater vehicle,” Matthews said.

Continued at http://abcnews.go.com/International/story?id=23301626

Today, CNN published this article:

Aviation geeks, a flight club set on solving Malaysia mystery

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/13/travel/aviation-geek-culture/

The article mentions an interesting 500-page thread at The Professional Pilots Rumour Network, titled Malaysian Airlines MH370 contact lost, in this section:

http://www.pprune.org/rumours-news-13/

At today's press conference it was announced that a Bluefin-21 autonomous underwater vehicle will soon be put to use in the search. You can learn more about the Bluefin-21 here:

http://www.bluefinrobotics.com/products/bluefin-21/

Malaysia Jet Search Area Too Deep for Submarine | Associated Press

The search area for the missing Malaysian jet has proved too deep for a robotic submarine which was hauled back to the surface of the Indian Ocean less than half way through its first seabed hunt for wreckage and the all-important black boxes, authorities said on Tuesday.

Search crews sent the Bluefin 21 deep into the Indian Ocean on Monday to begin scouring the seabed for the missing Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 after failing for six days to detect any signals believed to be from its black boxes.

But after only six hours of its planned 16-hour mission on the sea bed, the autonomous underwater vehicle exceeded its maximum depth limit of 4,500 meters (15,000 feet) and its built-in safety feature returned it to the surface, the search coordination center said in a statement on Tuesday.

What if anything it might have discovered during the six-hour search was still being analyzed, it added.

The Bluefin 21 will resume the search Tuesday when weather conditions permit, it said.

Search authorities knew that the primary wreckage from Flight MH370 was likely lying at the limit of the Bluefin's dive capabilities. Deeper diving submersibles have been evaluated, but none is yet available in the search area.

Continued at http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/robotic-submarine-deployed-search-plane-23314808

Odd. We have sent men and machines to the moon, but have very little that can go to the bottom of our own oceans, and nothing that can spend much time or search a large area.

Otters?

Oh, yes there is. We just haven't asked him to wake up yet.
View attachment Godzilla%252520KoM%252520Sleeping%252520Underwater

Don't, he'll just wake up that mate of his over in R'lyeh.

Undersea drone hunt for Malaysian plane may take two months | Reuters

A U.S. Navy underwater drone sent to search for a missing Malaysian jetliner on the floor of the Indian Ocean could take up to two months to scour a 600 sq km area where the plane is believed to have sunk, U.S. search authorities said on Tuesday.

The prediction coincided with the end to the abbreviated first mission by the Bluefin-21 autonomous underwater vehicle six hours into what was meant to be a 16-hour operation on Monday after it exceeded its 4.5 km (14,750 feet) depth limit and was automatically returned to the surface.

The introduction of the undersea drone marks a new slower paced phase in the search for Malaysia Airlines MH370 which disappeared on March 8 and is presumed to have crashed thousands of km (miles) off course with the loss of all 239 people on board.

Authorities, who soon plan to scale back the air and surface search, are confident they know the approximate position of wreckage of the Boeing 777, some 1,550 km (960 miles) northwest of Perth, and are moving ahead on the basis of four acoustic signals they believe are from its black box recorders.

But having not heard a "ping" for almost a week and with the batteries on the locator beacons two weeks past their 30-day expected life, the slow-moving "autonomous underwater vehicle" was launched on Monday to try and locate wreckage.

"The AUV takes six times longer to cover the same area as the towed pinger locator. It is estimated that it will take the AUV anywhere from six weeks to two months to scan the entire search area," Lt. J.G. Daniel S. Marciniak, a spokesman for the U.S. Seventh Fleet, said in a statement.

Continued at http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/15/us-malaysia-airlines-idUSBREA3A06W20140415

I'm surprised Tom Cruise hasn't stopped by...

I thought those guys had all the supa-powarzzz

Why waste them on small potatoes when they have the planet to clear?

In their view these people have individuated themselves from the rest, as a result they are not worth saving.

I'm sure they could sign up millions for scilontology if they found the black box!

Black box is not Hubbard tech!

When they're trolling for the airliner, will trolls troll them?

The machine that goes "ping" was, like all good things, devised by Monty Python.

Black box sounds increasingly like Hubbard tech!
Out of date tech. Does not transmit/stream data. Batteries die quickly.
What's the betting that one of the outcomes of this saga is a complete re-design of the black box recorder?

They should have wired it up to the 200kg of Lithium batteries in the cargo hold.

It would last forever.

Unless it catches fire and explodes.

The fire that goes PING.

Also Angry Birds could join the four-mile down club.

MH370 search is fast running out of time, says Australian prime minister | The Guardian

"We believe that search will be completed within a week or so."

"If we don't find wreckage, we stop, we regroup, we reconsider."

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/17/mh-370-search-running-out-of-time-says-tony-abbott

Search for Malaysia Airlines jet refocuses on drone scans of seafloor | Reuters

Asked by Reuters on Thursday to clarify Abbott's comments to the newspaper, his office said he was only suggesting that authorities may change the area being searched by the Bluefin-21 drone, not that the search would be called off.

"They've been looking for 40 days and haven't found anything floating yet," Geoffrey Dell, Associate Professor of Accident Investigation and Forensics at Central Queensland University, told Reuters.

"You'd have to start saying there's either nothing to find or let's move elsewhere," he said.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/17/us-malaysia-airlines-idUSBREA3A06W20140417

Current underwater search for Malaysia plane could end within a week | Reuters

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/19/us-malaysia-airlines-idUSBREA3I01020140419

Video: Malaysia Airlines MH370: search is at a 'critical juncture' | Telegraph

The Malaysian acting Transport Minister says that a successful weekend search for the missing Malaysia Airlines flight is very critical if the investigation is to move forward.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...s-MH370-search-is-at-a-critical-juncture.html

This is a strange story. Sounds like a scam. Maybe Andy or some of the other aviation people can figure out if the Tipton family would have some reason to discourage lawsuits by family members of Flight 370 passengers. Do they own a lot of Boeing stock?

Off topic, but I was Googling “Tipton family” and I stumbled on some really interesting Tiptons. For example, Billy Tipton. Why has this woman’s life not been made into a movie? It’s one of the most amazing stories ever:

Relative Of Missing Malaysia Passenger: 'Not A Single One Of Our Questions Was Answered'

Agence France Presse

Relatives of flight MH370 passengers have denounced the Malaysian government's suggestion that it would soon look into issuing death certificates for those on board despite no proof yet of what happened to the plane.

The statement, issued in response to a weekend briefing that Malaysian officials gave to families in Kuala Lumpur, also called for a review of satellite data that Malaysia says indicates the plane likely crashed somewhere in the Indian Ocean.

"We, the families of MH370, believe that until they have conclusive proof that the plane crashed with no survivors, they have no right to attempt to settle this case with the issuance of death certificates and final payoffs," said the statement by the "United Families of MH370".

In Sunday's briefing, a Malaysian official said the government would look into a timetable for issuing death certificates for passengers on the Malaysia Airlines flight, which are required for families to seek insurance payments, settle debts and address a range of other issues.

Deputy Foreign Minister Hamzah Zainudin also asked relatives in the meeting to submit a proposal for government financial assistance for families as the MH370 search wears on.

But relatives, who have repeatedly accused the government and national airline of botching a response to the plane's disappearance and withholding information, said Malaysian authorities were playing an agonising "cat and mouse game" over the fate of their loved ones.

"WE ARE IN UTTER OUTRAGE, DESPAIR AND SHOCK!" the statement said, using bold caps.

Malaysian officials could not immediately be reached to comment. The government and airline deny they are hiding anything.

Continued at http://www.businessinsider.com/relatives-disregard-no-survivors-2014-4

Malaysia submits first report on MH370, will keep it ‘secret’ | CNN WIre

http://myfox8.com/2014/04/24/malaysia-submits-first-report-on-mh370-wont-publicize-it/

Families' next step: Demanding answers from Boeing | CNN

http://www.cnn.com/2014/04/24/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane/

April 25 Media Statement on MH370 Incident | Wall Street Journal

Malaysia Airlines confirms that its staff were held at the Lido Hotel ballroom in Beijing by the family members of MH370 as the families expressed dissatisfaction in obtaining details of the missing aircraft on 24 April 2014 at 3pm.

The over 200 family members requested for the presence of a Malaysian official as only Malaysian Airline staff were present at the briefing session.

The 10 airline staff, then, were told to wait at the ballroom whilst a group of 60 family members left for the Malaysian Embassy in an attempt to get a government official to attend the briefing.

The group finally released the staff at 1:44am, 25 April 2014.

In another incident, Malaysia Airlines Security supervisor, Kalaichelven Shunmugam was attacked by a Chinese family member whilst on duty at Lido Hotel in Beijing on 22 April 2014. The airline staff tried to stop an aggressive family member who demanded access to the secretariat, when the latter kicked the staff in his left knee.

Those at the scene managed to defuse the situation and later brought Kalaichelven to the secretariat for first aid assistance. The staff sustained only light injury.

Malaysia Airlines had filed a police report following the incident.

http://stream.wsj.com/story/malaysia-airlines-flight-370/SS-2-475558/

Royal Navy submarine abandons search for MH370 | Telegraph

A Royal Navy submarine has ended its search for the missing Malaysia Airlines passenger jet as a senior US defence official conceded the hunt for MH370 may now take years.

The Ministry of Defence in London said HMS Tireless had stood down after combing the southern Indian Ocean with its advanced sonar scanners, looking for the airliner's black box.

The decision to stand down the Trafalgar Class hunter killer submarine was made after Australian commanders coordinating the international search said there was no chance of hearing more ‘pings’ from the lost black box.

A statement said: “With the Australian command assessing that there is no prospect of further acoustic detections associated with the aircraft black boxes, HMS Tireless has been stood down.”

A senior US defence official told the Reuters news agency that a fortnight of scouring the Indian Ocean floor with a US Navy submersible drone had turned up no wreckage.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/wor...Navy-submarine-abandons-search-for-MH370.html

It could take years. They may never find it. The tinfoilers are gonna have a field-day.

Expanded Search Area for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Not Just Larger but Deeper | Wall Street Journal

Underwater Drone Used in Last Few Weeks' Search Would Fall Short in Much of Widened Target

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303939404579529502465636382

Malaysia Airlines MH370 disappearance may be final straw for airline | Sydney Morning Herald

The disappearance of Malaysian Air flight 370 may hasten a breakup of the 76-year-old unprofitable airline.

Even before the jet vanished March 8 on its way to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian Airline System Bhd. had run up losses of $US1.3 billion ($1.4 billion) in the previous three years. The incident has put the carrier under global scrutiny, jeopardising its reputation and prompting boycotts by travel agents in China.

Analysts now project losses through 2016 and the Subang, Malaysia-based company is trading near the lowest since 2001 relative to its assets, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Split up, the government-controlled airline could fetch $US1.3 billion, an amount that's more than 10 per cent higher than the company's market value last week, said Malayan Banking Bhd.

"In this kind of environment, they have the sympathy of the whole world if they want to do a restructuring," James Lau, who helps manage $US300 million at Pheim Asset Management Sdn. in Kuala Lumpur, said by phone, referring to Malaysian Air. "Shareholders would like to see them take the hard decisions."

<snipped>

In China, home to most of the missing aircraft's passengers, travel agents ELong and Ly.com have stopped selling tickets for Malaysian Air flights. Qunar Cayman Islands, a travel website controlled by Baidu Inc., also boycotted the business. Baidu owns China's most popular search engine.

<snipped>

The airline, majority owned by government investment company Khazanah Nasional Bhd., will lose another $US346 million by the end of 2016, according to analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg.

"Things are not working," Mohshin Aziz, an analyst at Maybank in Kuala Lumpur, said by phone. "Doing the same thing over and over again and hoping for a different result is just plain madness."

http://www.smh.com.au/business/avia...e-final-straw-for-airline-20140429-37eg4.html

Malaysia Airlines flight MH370: Officials release cockpit audio for first time | The Independent

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/w...ase-cockpit-audio-for-first-time-9301054.html

MH370: cockpit transcript released | The Guardian

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/apr/01/mh370-cockpit-transcript-released

Malaysia to release preliminary report on MH370 on Thursday

A preliminary report on Malaysia Airlines' missing MH370 will be released on Thursday, Malaysia's Acting Transport Minister said on Wednesday.

Datuk Seri Hishammuddin Hussein said the Cabinet ministers had on Wednesday given their approval for the report's release at a press conference. He declined to reveal what was in the report.

"The report is a standard one which has been forwarded to the ICAO from the DCA," he told the media after launching the express rail link extension at the Kuala Lumpur International Airport 2. "I've got all the necessary mandate to move forward."

He added that he will be in Australia next week to speak to authorities on cost-sharing of the undersea search for the missing aircraft as it enters into a new phase where more undersea assets are required.

"Hopefully by next week we will announce the cost sharing," he said. "But we won't know what the cost will be until we decide where we're going to search, what assets we will use and who will supply those assets."

Continued at http://www.straitstimes.com/the-big...se-preliminary-report-mh370-thursday-20140430

Cost pressures mount as Malaysia Airlines search drags on | Reuters

With the search for missing Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 entering a new, much longer phase, the countries involved must decide how much they are prepared to spend on the operation and what they stand to lose if they hold back.

The search is already set to be the most costly in aviation history and spending will rise significantly as underwater drones focus on a larger area of the seabed that Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott said on Monday could take six to eight months to search.

But despite U.S. President Barack Obama publicly promising to commit more assets, the United States appears keen to begin passing on the costs of providing sophisticated sonar equipment that will form the backbone of the expanded hunt.

That means Australia, China and Malaysia - the countries most closely involved in the operation - look set to bear the financial and logistical burden of a potentially lengthy and expensive search.

"We're already at tens of millions. Is it worth hundreds of millions?" a senior U.S. defense official told Reuters last week. "I don't know. That's for them to decide."

He made it clear that Washington was intent on spending less from now on, making it the first major donor country to scale back its financial commitment to the search.

"We're not going to pay to perpetually use the equipment on an indefinite basis. Basically from here on out - starting next week or so - they need to pick up the contract," he said.

At least $44 million was spent on the deployment of military ships and aircraft in the Indian Ocean and South China Sea in the first month of the search, about the same as was spent on the whole underwater search for Air France's Flight AF447, which crashed into the Mid-Atlantic in 2009.

Continued at http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/04/30/us-malaysia-airlines-search-idUSBREA3T0FG20140430

Malaysia Releases Preliminary MH 370 Report, Shows Delayed Reaction | KTLA 5

Malaysia has released to the public its preliminary report on the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370.

The report says officials apparently didn’t notice for 17 minutes that the plane had gone off radar on March 8 — and didn’t activate an official rescue operation for four hours.

http://ktla.com/2014/05/01/malaysia...ort-on-mh-370-company-defends-wreckage-claim/

Malaysia Airlines tells flight 370 passengers’ relatives to go home | The Telegraph

Malaysia Airlines has announced that it is closing its family assistance centres and urged the families of passengers to leave the hotels where they have stayed and to go home to await further news.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/ne...tives-to-go-home/story-fniztvnh-1226902696640

I don't know if this was posted yet.

http://news.yahoo.com/mh370-carried-440-pounds-danger-224000552--politics.html

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...aded-2-3tonnes-items-not-listed-manifest.html