Just like everyone else in the world at the time, I remember intently watching the news each week for updates regarding the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH-370. Now over 5 years later, key components of the investigation still remain unsolved and many families are still left with unanswered questions. If you are not familiar with this particular incident, The Atlantic’s article: “What Really Happened To Malaysia’s Airline”, does an excellent job of recapping the event and outlining the investigation process from the beginning (2014) to now.
Overtime, I quickly forgot about this story, until recently I realized how long it had been since this incident had happened. Importantly, when I first started to read the article I began to recollect the details of the event, but noticed that I never truly followed up on the investigation’s conclusions. Well it turns out that the latest updates indicate two things:
1) The investigation itself was corrupted due to politics
2) The disappearance of MH370 was heavily influenced by the Captain’s seemingly psychological instability.
Although the Malaysian government’s extensive report was withheld from the public, personal interviews from Captain Zaharie Ahmed Shah’s friends offer a deeper understanding into the lonely and isolated life of Shah. According to recent forensic examinations by the FBI, Shah had kept a simulator in his house as a “hobby” when he was away from work. The recovered files from the simulator suggest the following:
1) He experimented with a flight profile and route similar to that of MH370
2) He tested the effect of fast changes in altitude on cabin pressurization.
3) Of all the simulations he ran, the final flight path of MH370 was the only one in which he experimented with fuel and altitude.
Basically……before the flight crashed, the Captain is said to have changed the altitudes drastically in order to depressurize the cabin. This as result, may have killed all of the passengers on board before its presumed demise in the Indian Ocean.
Unfortunately today, the investigation by national governments has slowed down on all accounts, leaving independent investigators to continue the search for debris. It’s disheartening to witness Malaysia turn its back on the investigation, as a country’s primary responsibility should be to protect its own people. Even though it is understandable why the international community isn’t able to provide more resources today with their being little to gain from further studies, it’s important to appreciate and support those who continue to work towards uncovering the truth.
For Malaysia I think there is some national benefit to be gleaned from completing this investigation, given the decline in reputability and profitability of flag carrier: Malaysian Airlines. Reports even suggest now that the government is planning to shut down the ailing airline. It’s a sad story when a government can’t provide the families of the victims of MH370 solid answers, but trying to cover it up and letting a national symbol die is something else. At this point, the least the Malaysian government can do is remove the red tape and allow accredited private investigators full reigns on the investigation.
It’s tragic. There’s no better way to put it. And the world seems to be moving on without the answers. Sadly, the ones who continue to search for answers just seem to be running into too much red tape, unable to break through to the other side.