Ashleigh Thompson
Malaysia Flight 370
Throughout history, there have been many events that have baffled the world. From the shocking death of Princess Diana to the withheld mysteries behind Area 51, human kind has continually been proved to be imperfect and uninformed. However, one of most perplexing occurrences in recent time is the disappearance of the Malaysia Airlines Flight 370. What seemed to be a conventional trip for the 239 passengers traveling from Malaysia to China turned out to be a history-wrecking phenomenon (Gregerson). Even after four years, there are numerous questions regarding the disappearance. Was hijacking a possible reason for the missing plane? Did the pilot or any other crew members have any involvement? Where could the plane have potentially gone? Throughout this paper, each of these will be discussed to hopefully answer the overarching question of what happened.
In times of adversity, there never seems to be one simple choice that humanity makes as a whole. There is a constant struggle between right and wrong, good and bad. In the life and supposed death of Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, there could not be a more true statement. This man, who seemed to live a normal life, may not have been as innocent as once thought. After the unimaginable and mysterious disappearance of Malaysian Flight 370 along with its 239 passengers and crew in 2014, the world was left to assume the worst. To this day, questions and accusations fly around, wondering if it was a case of hijacking? Possible malfunction? Or could the man who held every life on that plane in his hands have decided to change their course forever? As nice as it would be to know what really happened, the only witnesses are most likely somewhere in the middle of the ocean. However, by observing the personal life and personality of Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah, there might be hope for some clarity and answers on the greatest mystery in aviation history.
Zaharie Ahmad Shah was a successful family man who seemed to have everything that he could ever need. At fifty-three years old, he was married with three children and one grandson while thriving at his dream job (Arianna 1). “To me he had everything in life. He had everything to lose. He was a cheerful, jovial man, a complete professional who would know what to do in a crisis,” said Nasir Osman, who attended school with the captain (Sheridan 1). However, after further questioning, Zaharie’s wife revealed that they had been having issues within their marriage and were even on the verge of divorce (Semple 1). After their nearly thirty years of marriage and leading up to the fateful flight, his wife started to notice that Zaharie was acting strange and closing himself off from his family (Arianna 1). It was such a drastic difference from normal that his daughter could not help but have questions. “He wasn’t his usual self. He was distant and cranky,” she said, adding that she did not know if there was another woman in her father’s life (Arianna 1). Furthermore, there have been investigations into his accused obsession with two Malaysian model sisters and into the ninety-seven sexual messages that he left on their Facebook posts (Kenton 1). All of this occurred in 2013, not even one year before the disappearance of MH370 (Kenton 1).
Zaharie Ahmad Shah was extremely determined and driven in everything that he did. With over 18,000 hours of logged flight for Malaysia Airlines, it would seem that Zaharie had worked uncommonly hard to become comfortable behind the controls of a plane (Semple 1). He also spent hours of his free time using a homemade flight simulator in his home where he could connect with other pilots and share his simulated flights (Sheridan 1). Mr. Zaharie “was well known to many in the flight simulation community because he had developed an online presence in which he dedicated many hours of his time to promoting the enjoyment of flying generally, and flight simulation specifically,” wrote Robert S. Randazzo, president of PMDG, a company which develops flight simulation software (Semple1). However, a strange fact found in the captain’s investigation is that one of of the flights programmed in his simulator was set to land in the Indian Ocean, which is the most likely location of where MH370 crashed (Sheridan 1). Also, unlike his usually passionate personality, Zaharie had strangely not made any future plans before taking off in MH370 (Arianna 1).
Zaharie Ahmad Shah was immensely involved in Malaysian politics. In January of 2013, he joined a group headed by Anwar Ibrahim, who was a leader of Malaysian opposition, called the People’s Justice Party (Semple 1). A few hours before the flight took off, Anwar was imprisoned and sentenced to seven years in prison for sodomy which could have affected Zaharie’s composure before flying (Arianna 1). In this group, Zaharie voiced his opinions about the Malaysian government while referring to certain political leaders as “morons” (Kenton 1). UK-based psychologist, Paul Dickens said: "I think what you’re seeing is a degree of obsessional behaviour mixed with recklessness, which is unusual for a pilot.” (Arianna 1). It is extremely unusual because, normally, a pilot would not voice such rash opinions publicly, knowing that he could be punished in some way (Kenton 1).
Overall, it would seem that Zaharie Ahmad Shah was not entirely the man that his family and friends thought him to be. From his strong political beliefs to his unfortunate marriage situation and sexual accusations, this captain lived a life that adds to the suspicion of the disappearing Malaysia Flight 370. Along with all of the unknowns surrounding the missing plane, the life of Zaharie Ahmad Shah leads to asking the overarching question of what really happened to Flight 370.
In 2014, one of the most disturbing mysteries in aviation history occurred. Without a trace, Malaysian Flight 370 disappeared from the sky. Even four years later, the reason for this baffling disappearance has yet to be established, but many theories have come to light. Is hijacking or a terrorist takeover the explanation for the missing plane? Could a mechanical malfunction have led to the fateful crash? Or did the pilot and other crew members have any involvement? All of these potential explanations have pros and cons that will be discussed in this paper with hope of establishing a reason for the disappearance that shocked the world.
The first conspiracy theory believes that this incident was a case of hijacking or terrorist takeover. According to the official Malaysian report released this year regarding the missing plane, action from a third party is the most likely cause of disappearance (Kindred 1). In history, one of the biggest examples of terrorism occurred on September 11, 2001 when Islamic group al-Qaeda used three hijacked planes to crash into the World Trade Center towers and the Pentagon (9/11 Attacks, 1). It is because of examples such as 9/11 that people even suggest the possibility of Flight 370 being hijacked. This conspiracy theory claims that it can possibly be proved because the plane’s course was purposefully redirected through manual control (Kindred 1). How could the plane have made its 180 degree change of direction unless someone was choosing to make it do that? Also, the pilot and crew have been investigated, and there has been no proof of their involvement (Kindred 1). However, even after four years, no group has claimed credit for the disappearance unlike in most other terrorist situations where the group is proud and confident in telling what they have done (Malaysia 1). As stated by Malaysian investigator Kok Soo Chon “We can also not exclude the possibility that there’s unlawful interference by a third party. But based on the military record, there was no evidence of a rapid change in the altitude and the speed to indicate that MH370 was deliberately evading radar.” (MH370 1) Overall, this theory cannot be a proven cause for the disappearance unless more plausible evidence comes out.
The second conspiracy theory suggests that mechanical malfunction is a logical explanation for the disappearance. Although most of the facts of this theory have been proven wrong, it is often easier to blame the crash on something rather than someone. This point is emphasized by a survey given this week to a group of Houston-based people which showed that mechanical malfunction was the most popular theory (Thompson 1). The results of this survey showed that 50% of people believe in the mechanical malfunction theory, 27% believe that it was hijacking, and 22% believe that the pilot or crew is to blame (Thompson 1). However, considering the controlled changes and shifts of direction that the plane experienced, it is extremely unlikely that a mechanical malfunction was occurring (Malaysia 1). Also, the plane was still able to have communication for most of the duration of the flight which would not have been possible with a mechanical error (Malaysia 1). “The aircraft maintainers record indicates the aircraft was well maintained … There was no record of any malfunction or defect of the aircraft — none that could have contributed to the disappearance,” Investigator Chon said. (MH370 1) It is likely, however, that the plane ran out of fuel at some point in the flight leading to its final crash (Malaysia 1). But according to the Malaysia Flight 370 final report that came out this year, mechanical malfunction is the one theory that has been ruled out (Kindred 1).
The third conspiracy theory points to the pilot or other crew members as suspects and claims that they purposely chose to crash the plane. Considering that the few pieces of recovered debris show that the plane was under someone’s control for the duration of the flight, it would make sense that the pilot or copilot would be guilty (Kindred 1). However, according to the previously mentioned survey, this theory is the least popular among average citizens (Thompson 1). There has been much investigation done into the lives of both the pilot and co-pilot, and many questions have arose which leads to more suspicion and accusations. For instance, while looking into the pilot’s rough personal life specifically, investigators discovered a home flight simulation system that had a course plotted to land in the Indian Ocean which is where Flight 370 is suspected to have crashed (Malaysia 1). Although, facts such as these seem to give evidence of the pilot’s guilt, there has been no physical and undeniable proof (Malaysia 1). "We are not of the opinion that it could be an event committed by the pilot," Malaysian investigator Kok Soo Chon told a media briefing. (Malaysia 1)
In conclusion, there are many pros and cons for the conspiracy theories available about the missing Malaysia Flight 370. From mechanical failure to purposeful crashing, humanity has stretched their thinking and strived to know every possible answer for the mystery. However, as put by investigator Chon, "The team is unable to determine the real cause for disappearance. The answer can only be conclusive if the wreckage is found." (Kinder 1)
Even after four years of investigation, the baffling disappearance of Malaysian Flight 370 has remained unsolved but has led to three possible conspiracy theories:
- Is hijacking or a terrorist takeover the explanation for the missing plane?
- Could a mechanical malfunction have led to the fateful crash?
- Did the pilot or another crew member have any involvement in crashing the plane?
Each of these questions has its pros and cons while also bringing even more suspicions to light. Although the final report from the Malaysian government concluded that action from a third party is the most likely cause for the disappearance, the world will forever be left to wonder and question this mystery until the plane is finally found (Malaysia 1).
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