A new theory, promoted by former NTSB investigator Alan Diehl, has given the investigation into the strange disappearance of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 a fresh direction a decade on from when the incident occurred. Having taken part in more than three decades of crash investigations, Diehl advances the belief that the missing Boeing 777 could have plunged into the Andaman Sea off northwest Malaysia, rather than the southern part of the Indian Ocean to date focused upon.
His theory is based on the pilot, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, having a political motive. According to Diehl, Shah might have hijacked the aircraft to make a political statement against the Malaysian regime. The plan reportedly was to fly the plane in secret across Malaysia to the American military base in Diego Garcia, where Shah planned to broadcast his manifesto before landing and releasing the passengers.
It opens up a new perspective that tramples on the prevailing theories that dominated the search efforts. Most notably, it was against the widely held belief that he was suicidal and had the intention to crash the plane in a remote area off Australia’s southwest coast. He insisted that no motive is known for a suicide mission, and added that the first officer, Fariq Abdul Hamid, may have been able to regain access to the cockpit from the electronics bay.
Diehl’s theory also breaks away from other disputed ideas which have been the possibility of a cargo fire, hijacking, or even intelligence agencies involved. Although these theories had captured wide attention, Diehl’s concentration on the pilot’s political intention opened a new dimension for investigators.
The disappearance of MH370 on March 8, 2014, constitutes one of aviation’s most baffling mysteries. En route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, it disappeared from radar after making several sharp turns and completely losing contact. Despite continuous searches over an enormous area above 2 million square nautical miles at a projected cost of roughly $150 million, the wreckage remains unfound.
Diehl thinks that if his theory is right, the search should be directed to the Andaman Sea off Malaysia. Accordingly, he says, the current search hypothesis of a suicidal pilot or an altitude-set autopilot is flawed. Instead, he favors the eastern edge of the 2,500-mile “Seventh Arc,” which, he says, is a “far more fertile area” for wreckage.
The bottom line of definitive answers remains a constant pursuit by families and friends of the 239 victims. If his theory is proven right, it could shed some new light on this mystery and bring closure to those who have been affected by this tragedy. As the hunt for MH370 goes on, open-mindedness and harnessing every possibility are of paramount importance in the quest to find the truth behind this bizarre aviation mystery.