They later retracted it and said the announcement was a mistake. I can't imagine why since Chinese airlines have bought 51 of them from Boeing.
Only going I what I am reading...."Experts have previously said that whoever disabled the plane's communication systems and then flew the jet must have had a high degree of technical knowledge and flying experience." That doesn't sound like piracy to me. Now that we know the plane was in the air some 7+ hours after takeoff, it looks like 2 possible arcs. "authorities had determined that the plane's last communication with a satellite was in one of two possible arcs, or "corridors" — a northern one from northern Thailand through to the border of the Central Asian countries Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan, and a southern one from Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean." And now I am reading that the pilot's last words, "All right, good night" were said AFTER the two communication systems were shut off. Definitely a hostile situation or pilot suicide.
Those arcs they are mapping really shouldn't be thought of as "corridors" that this plane was flying along. They are just estimates of possible positions the plane could have been at when the signal was received, purely on angles. The plane could have been flying perpendicular to the arcs at that moment and be nowhere near them. The timing of the signal and how far the aircraft could have traveled by that time should be able to narrow it down quite a bit more. The Malaysians are just slow and are refusing help from Interpol and the FBI. If there are life rafts out there in the Indian Ocean somewhere floating for a week, these delays will be be looked at very suspiciously.
I just saw the explanation on CNN. The corridors were defined by 2 satellites picking up the signal pings. Were a 3rd satellite to have ping data, it would tell them exactly which corridor. The expert was adamant that based on the data, the plane was definitely in one of those two corridors.
It doesn't take a genius to fly an aircraft. It does however take some skill to land one in one piece.
The linked article states the search area is being focused in the Indian Ocean. It also states that there was a significant probability of the plane being at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. I agree. http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/...ands-to-Indian-Ocean/articleshow/31994643.cms
I am certainly no expert but the last "ping" was roughly 7+ hours after takeoff. They were nearly out of fuel at that time. Can't be too much further than that. I still think the US knows more than we are letting on. And WTF with the Malay gov't? Just NOW they are searching the pilot's home? Damn. That should have been done within the First 48. Lol.
