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Malaysian Airlines Flight MH370

Will We Ever Know What Happened to Flight MH370?

Google “flight MH370” and you’ll come up with more than a billion results within seconds. But will this give you even a tiny clue to what happened to the Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 on flight MH370 that disappeared without a trace after taking of from Kuala Lumpur International Airport on March 8, 2014? Still missing three weeks later, the theories grow, in spite of – or possibly largely because of – the official announcement on March 24 that the plane had crashed into the southern Indian Ocean, killing everyone on board.

Debris seems to come and go as “proof” of the crash. But so far (March 30, 2014) none has been found outside of satellite sightings, other than a few pieces retrieved from the ocean that turned out to be completely unrelated to the missing aircraft. Yet multiple countries continue to send planes and ships to try and find whatever they can. Money and manpower spent must be a record breaker. Why?

This is not a story I have even tried to research in any depth. But I have read as much as I could. It’s tragic, but fascinating, as most mysteries are. One of the issues that boggles my mind is how the Malaysian authorities so confidently announced that the airline had plunged into the sea and that everyone was dead … and then a day or so later, the Australian investigators moved the search 1,100 km (684 miles) north east. Maybe they aren’t working together. Who knows?

But whatever the reasons, I cannot begin to imagine how heartbreaking it is for the families and loved ones of those on board.

My own maternal grandfather died in a plane crash, when I was not quite three months old. I was too young to be aware at the time, though I have become more than a little apprehensive about air travel ever since.

It was South Africa’s first major plane crash, and all 17 people on board were killed when the Dakota, Paardeberg, crashed into a mountain 11 miles (about 18 km) south-east of Kokstad on a routine flight from Cape Town (in the Western Cape) to Durban (in kwaZulu-Natal) via East London and Port Elizabeth (in the Eastern Cape). The plane had deviated from the normal route, and hit a high peak in the Ingeli Mountains and exploded. The wreckage was first sighted by the pilot of the Paardeberg’s sister plane who was flying a similar route the next morning. He immediately radioed a somber message: “Plane sighted 11 miles from Kokstad. Hit mountain. Exploded. Burnt out. Impossible any survivors.”

Flight MH 370
Air crash scene. An aerial photograph that shows the wreckage of the SAA Dakota, Paardeberg that crashed into a mountain on October 15, 1951. The scorched veld (ground) shows the path of the aircraft as it tore across the ground in flames, breaking up as it did so. The starboard wing can be seen in the foreground, while the tail can be seen in the top left-hand corner of the picture. Officials found the two engines “some distance” away. A policeman can be seen to the right of the wing (circled in orange).

A letter written by my journalist father to my mother at the time said:

“There are fears and questions which will haunt you. Why did the pilot bear west, instead of east, if it was to avoid foggy weather? Was there engine trouble? Did they know? Questions such as these may, or may not, be answered. Rest assured, my beloved that, cruel and harsh tho’ it is, when they hit that mountain they were all dead; and who knows what is life and death?”

He went on to boost her Christian spirit in the only way he knew how, writing:

“… In the depth of your hopes and desires lies your silent knowledge of the beyond; And like seeds dreaming beneath the snow your heart dreams of spring. TRUST THE DREAMS, FOR IN THEM IS HIDDEN THE GATE TO ETERNITY.

“Your fear of death is but the trembling of the shepherd when he stands before the King whose hand is to be laid upon him IN HONOUR …

“Look into space; you will see him walking in the cloud, outstretching his arms in the lightning and descending in rain. You will see him smiling in flowers, then rising and waving his hands in trees.

” ‘…And if you cannot but weep when your soul summons you to prayer, she should spur you again and yet again, though weeping, until you shall come laughing. When you pray you rise to meet in the air those who are praying at that very hour, and whom save in prayer you may not meet. Therefore let your visit to that temple invisible be for naught but ecstasy and sweet communion.

“… Our God, who are our winged self, it is thy will in us that willeth’ “

Perhaps those written words provided solace. I don’t know; I was too young to know, and my Christian beliefs are nowhere as strong as my father’s were. But what I do know is that the families of the 227 passengers and 12 crew members on board flight MH370 have no solace right now. How can they?

There was no mention in the newspaper reports I have seen of the black box (or flight recorder) that was presumably on the plane that killed my grandfather when it crashed. I know that they found some personal items, including his battered cuff links and his wedding ring, because these were returned to my grandmother, even though most of the plane was burnt out.

I read today that an Australian warship has been dispatched to the new Indian Ocean search area where authorities believe Flight MH370 went down. It is equipped with high tech stuff that can detect transmissions from the aircraft’s black box, even if it is sitting at a depth of up to 6,000 m (19,685 feet). But the batteries in most flight recorders normally last for 30 days, and it is already more than three weeks since the plane disappeared. There is still time, but it is quickly becoming less and less likely that the black box from Flight MH370 will be found.

I don’t know. You don’t know. But here are a few links to articles that may provide clues, ideas, inspiration, thoughts of what might have happened to that fateful Malaysian flight on March 8, 2014.

If you have read something that might contribute to the conversation, please feel free to add your comments.

  • Veteran Pilot has a Theory that he believes makes perfect sense. Flight MH370’s changed direction and was heading to Palau Langkawi Airport after an in-flight emergency.
  • This man says he knows what happened to Flight MH370 – though it has not been reported on mainstream media. Watch the video.
  • Mike Adams has been covering the story from the start, and he doesn’t believe much the authorities are feeding us. Here’s his article that maintains it is an official cover up. This link will take you to other interesting quite controversial articles he has written.
  • CNN looks back at other missing aircraft mysteries. This is not the first and it is unlikely to be the last.

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