Pilot suicide or terrorism? Missing plane plot thickens

KUALA LUMPUR, Sunday

New revelations about the missing Malaysia Airlines plane have left anguished relatives contemplating the prospect that those on board endured a terrifying, high-altitude hijack ordeal that may have lasted nearly eight hours.

The disclosures have led to increased speculation of a terror plot or pilot suicide for some relatives. For others, however, they offered a glimmer of hope — that the Malaysia Airlines plane carrying 239 passengers and crew may have landed safely and that, somehow, loved ones may be alive.

One report of the plane fluctuating from low to high altitude fuelled fears that the passengers may have been well aware they were in danger.

While the theory that the plane landed somewhere and has remained hidden is seen as improbable by experts, most do not discount it as impossible. “It may be a hijack, but why have there been no demands?” wondered Selmat Umar, 60, a Malaysian whose 29-year-old son, Khairul Amrison, was on the plane.

The fact that most of the passengers on board the Beijing-bound flight were Chinese has raised the possibility of involvement by militants from China’s Muslim ethnic Uighur minority.

The New York Times said the jet had reached 45,000 feet — above its approved altitude limit — before it “descended unevenly to 23,000 feet”. The newspaper cited Malaysian military radar signals, but the data has not been confirmed by the authorities.

The multi-nation search is now focused on two vast areas, stretching from Kazakhstan to the southern Indian Ocean.

For relatives in China, which had 153 citizens on the flight, the investigators’ breakthrough just brought more distress and frustration. “We are experiencing an ordeal. We are still waiting for (more information),” said one tearful man emerging from a meeting between Malaysia Airlines and relatives in Beijing on Sunday.

“We are extremely anxious. A long time has passed and they don’t disclose (more) information,” he said.

Another said: “Until they say what really and truly happened, what good is it?”

Yet for others the new evidence brought relief — and a reason for hope.

“Our family is relieved that there’s an official statement from the Malaysian government, delivered by the Malaysian prime minister, that there’s a possibility that the aircraft might have been hijacked,” said Indonesian Santi, 42. Her brother, Sugianto Lo, was on the flight with his wife.

“There have been too many speculations about the missing plane so this official statement has helped to quash some of them,” she said. “At least it gives us hope that our loved ones are still safe. We really hope that the various governments will help to look for the plane.”

I will not lose hope

Malaysian Subramaniam Gurusamy, 60, whose 34-year-old son Puspanathan Gurusamy was on board, refused to believe the worst.

“I will not lose hope. I want to hear my son cry out ‘Father!” he said.

For relatives of Bob and Cathy Lawton, a missing Australian couple, the possibility of a terrifying drawn-out fate at thousands of feet reflected their deepest fears.

“That’s one of the worst things I could have hoped for,” Bob’s brother, Mr David Lawton, told News Limited newspapers. “Even if they are alive, what did they have to put up with?”

“We have hopes and dreams that something might come, but at the moment we just don’t know. It’s all up in the air.”

The scope for speculation is as broad as the new search area that stretches from Kazakhstan to the southern Indian Ocean.

Expert opinion that disabling the communications system required specialist knowledge of the Boeing 777 has intensified scrutiny of Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah and his First Officer, Fariq Abdul Hamid.

Scott Hamilton, managing director of US-based aerospace consultancy Leeham Co, said Najib’s refusal to confirm a hijacking was telling.

“It sounded to me that the pilots haven’t been ruled out. He was saying don’t focus only on hijackers,” Hamilton said.

Malaysian media reported that investigators had gone to the homes of both pilots on Saturday.

Two passengers who boarded the plane with stolen EU passports have been identified as Iranians by Interpol, who said they were most likely illegal immigrants who did not fit terrorist profiles. (AFP)