BREAKING NEWS: Malaysia Airlines Says It Has Lost Contact With A Flight

[gatagato]

MISSING MH370: Man claims possible sighting of airliner

KELANTAN: A businessman in Ketereh claimed that he saw a bright white light, believed to be of an aircraft, descending at high speed towards the South China Sea about 1.45am on the day flight MH370 went missing.
Alif Fathi Abdul Hadi, 29, told the New Straits Times what he saw after lodging a report with the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) in Tok Bali earlier today.

Alif said he was in the compound of his home when he saw the bright white light, which he described as similar to the ones used by airplanes during night flights.

"I was walking towards my back door when I caught a glimpse of the white light.

"It was moving towards the sea, towards Bachok area, which was unusual.

"Usually, aircrafts that fly over here have their usual route pattern, but this one went completely towards the other way," he said.

Alif said he watched the light's movement for about five minutes, before realising that it was descending.

However, he said he was not sure that it was an airplane as he only saw the light.

He said there was no blinking red light.

"I did not think much about it, and went to sleep.

"Only the next day, when I heard the news on the radio, I thought that the light I saw could be from the aircraft's.

"After discussing with my family members, they advised me to lodge a report, and I hope this information can be of any help," he said.

http://www.nst.com.my/latest/font-co...liner-1.505683

[gatagato]

MISSING MH370: 'Mystified' as no jet debris found

KUALA LUMPUR : Malaysia said Monday there is still no trace of wreckage from a jet that vanished with 239 people on board, deepening the anguish of relatives two days after the “mystifying” disappearance.
A potential breakthrough emerged Sunday when an aircraft scouring waters off southern Vietnam — part of an international search and rescue effort — spotted two objects authorities said could be debris from Malaysia Airlines flight MH370.

But Malaysian authorities said there was no confirmation they came from the Boeing 777 which slipped off radar screens early on Saturday, an hour after leaving Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing.

“Unfortunately ladies and gentleman, we have not found anything that appears to be objects from the aircraft, let alone the aircraft itself,” said Malaysia’s civil aviation chief Azharuddin Abdul Rahman.

“This unprecedented missing aircraft mystery — it is mystifying and we are increasing our efforts to do what we have to do,” he told a press conference.

Malaysia has launched a terror probe after at least two of the passengers on board were found to have travelled on stolen passports.

But Azharuddin had few answers to the burning questions surrounding the plane’s fate. Asked whether it was possible the plane had been hijacked or disintegrated mid-air, he said nothing could be ruled out.

“We are looking at every angle. We are looking at every aspect of what could have happened,” he said. “Again, we have to get concrete evidence... we have to find the aircraft.”

More than 150 Chinese are among the missing passengers and Beijing’s state media on Monday lashed out at Malaysia and its national carrier over their handling of the crisis.

“The Malaysian side cannot shirk its responsibilities,” the Global Times newspaper, which is close to the ruling Communist Party, wrote in a scathing editorial.

“The initial response from Malaysia was not swift enough.”

At a Beijing hotel, Malaysian embassy officials were processing visa applications for families wanting to take up an airline offer to travel to Kuala Lumpur to be closer to the rescue operations.

Scores of relatives made their way into the room, some in groups of five or six, clutching handkerchiefs and wiping away tears from their faces.

Others said they would not go. “There is more we can do here in China,” one woman told AFP. “They haven’t even found the plane yet.”

A team of Chinese officials from government ministries headed for Malaysia on Monday, tasked with investigating the incident and helping family members already there.

As the search entered a third full day, other families of missing passengers gathered at a hotel in Malaysia’s administrative capital, Putrajaya, sharing breakfast as they stared intently at television news bulletins.

The search effort has zeroed in on waters off the remote Vietnamese island of Tho Chu, near where two large oil slicks — suspected to be caused by aircraft fuel — as well as the suspected debris were spotted on the weekend.

“All night we mobilised our most modern equipment for the search... but we found no sign of the objects,” Vice Admiral Ngo Van Phat told AFP of the hunt centred on Vietnam’s southwestern tip.

Tests on the oil slick that could indicate whether it came from the missing plane could be completed by later Monday, Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency director general Amdan Kurish told AFP.

Malaysian authorities said they were also combing waters closer to their shores, further south of Tho Chu.

A total of 40 ships and 34 aircraft from an array of Southeast Asian countries, China and the United States have been involved in the search, with two Australian surveillance aircraft joining.

As they scramble to discover what happened, Malaysian officials have said there was a possibility that MH370 may have inexplicably turned back towards Kuala Lumpur.

The plane, captained by a veteran MAS pilot, had relayed no indications of distress, and weather at the time was said to be good.

Questions have also swirled over how at least two passengers boarded the jet on stolen passports, sparking an investigation into possible links with terrorism and a probe into the sale of passports in Thailand — where the documents were stolen over the past two years.

Two European names — Christian Kozel, an Austrian, and Luigi Maraldi of Italy — were listed on the passenger list, but neither man boarded the plane.

Malaysia’s Home Minister Zahid Hamidi reportedly said Sunday that the two passengers who did board using those passports looked Asian in appearance.

“I am still puzzled how come (immigration officers) cannot think: an Italian and Austrian but with Asian facial features,” Zahid was quoted as saying by Malaysia’s national news agency Bernama.

Interpol confirmed that “at least two passports” recorded in its Stolen and Lost Travel Documents database were used by passengers on the Malaysian flight.

The United States has sent an FBI team to help investigate the passengers, but US officials stressed there was as yet no evidence of terrorism.

Malaysia Airlines shares lost 10 percent in early trading Monday as the market reacted to the jet’s disappearance.

The incident is a massive blow for the carrier which has haemorrhaged cash for several years amid mounting competition from low-cost rivals such as AirAsia.--AFP

http://www.nst.com.my/opinion/letter...found-1.505798

[DiamondSmiles]

There is a video here that will play when you click on the link.

http://player.theplatform.com/p/2E2e...o_plane_140309

March 10, 1014

Helicopters were scrambled on Monday to a floating, "yellow object," that rescue teams believed could be a life raft from the missing Malaysian Airlines plane - but it turned out to be a false alarm.

Pham Quy Tieu, Vietnam's vice transport minister and deputy head of the its rescue committee, said that a search plane had initially been unable to get close enough to determine what it was.

However, officials later said it was a "moss-covered cap of a cable reel."

The Civil Aviation Authority of Vietnam said on its website searches were being conducted about 90 miles southwest of Tho Chu island, which is located about 120 miles off the coast of southern Vietnam.

On Sunday, NBC News reported that no electronic, "chatter," has been detected indicating any known terror group was behind the Boeing 777's mysterious disappearance.

Two passengers on board Malaysian Airlines flight were traveling on stolen passports. Both ticket holders were due to connect to a flight to Amsterdam. One of the passengers was then scheduled to head to Frankfurt with the other en route to Stockholm.

The red-eye flight was carrying 229 people when it vanished en route from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Beijing in relatively clear weather. No distress signal was sent.

“This is an unprecedented mystery,” Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, director of Malaysia’s Department of Civil Aviation, told a news conference on Monday.

He said a hijacking had not been ruled out, “We have not narrowed down any possibilities.”

Reuters contributed to this report.

[Sharon]

I have just removed 19 off-topic comments from this thread that were tantamount to flaming. Please take any issues you have with each other into the WC, thanks.

8. While these rules cover most common situations they cannot anticipate everything. Consequently, we reserve the right to take any action(s) we deem appropriate to ensure these forums are not disrupted or abused in any way.

[DarwinsMistake]

Originally Posted by Sharon.

I have just removed 19 off-topic comments from this thread that were tantamount to flaming. Please take any issues you have with each other into the WC, thanks.

People here have issues? No way!!! How are ya young lady !! And yes this tragedy is quite sad..

[tbone79]

JFC..

They can't find ANYTHING yet..!?! Who's heading up the search, Ray Charles and Stevie Wonder?

When this baby hits 488 miles per hour, you're gonna see some serious shit....

[Xfactor]

I agree. A 777 is damn near impossible to lose.

[Pyramid_Head]

I believe its gone down into water and they have yet to find it. As time passes it seems more unlikely that any survivors will be recovered.

[susanmarie79]

Just read in the news today that the phones of some of the passengers are still ringing

[gatagato]

Originally Posted by susanmarie79

Just read in the news today that the phones of some of the passengers are still ringing

After twenty off-topic posts int this thread, you managed to post something on topic, congratulations!