New uncertainty about missing Malaysian plane

There is a gap between the northern and southern corridors, which only makes sense when you can be sure that you have searched the area in between sufficiently. Has this really been the case? Has Indonesia confirmed that there are no unidentified radar traces in any area on the west coast? In an extreme scenario, the pilot could have taken the same route back which he took to fly out west. Have Malaysian authorities checked the radar traces at the later times of the morning? Why don't they disclose the locations of the satellite signals received between 1 a.m. and 8 a.m.? Although we would just get a few more rings, they could still give hints about speed and direction of the plane to at least some extent.

Last but not least a question to the aviation experts: could the B777 pass undetected by passive radar when flying at very low altitudes when e.g. passing Java or more southern parts of Indonesia or when flying over the Java Sea?

It looks like whoever flew the plane had precise ideas of where he wanted to go and was willing to take unconventional steps to stay undetected. Hence we shouldn't exclude any possibilities prematurely...

Considering that 239 people most likely lost their lives in this incident it feels bad to say...but this is really, really fascinating. And it's only getting more interesting.

If it has gone somewhere else and landed, who is taking care of the passengers and crew, providing food, water, hygiene necessities for the last 10 days? That's quite a logistics effort...

“It’s very different from the Air France case. The Malaysian situation is much more difficult,” said Jean Paul Troadec, a special adviser to France’s aviation accident investigation bureau. Oui! Oui! Boy! Ain't that the truth!! This whole mess is way more complicated than when that Air France went down somewhere between France and Brazil!

If you eliminate all the impossible scenarios, the remaining one must be true, regardless of how unlikely it is. Therefore I am placing my bet on pilot suicide now.

WilliB, have to disagree. Actions taken by whoever was flying the plane were far to deliberate for someone simply intent on killing themselves.

The NYT notes:

According to military radar, the aircraft was flying extremely high shortly after its turn — as much as 45,000 feet, above the certified maximum altitude of 43,100 feet for the Boeing 777-200. It then descended as it crossed Peninsular Malaysia, flying as low as 23,000 feet before moving up to 29,500 feet and cruising there.

This could have been purposed either to prevent passengers from using cell phones or to, if the plane were depressurized, eliminate them all very quickly. The article also notes:

A table used by pilots for “time of useful consciousness” without an oxygen supplement at various altitudes shows only nine to 15 seconds at 45,000 feet, compared with five to 10 minutes at 22,000 feet.

One aviation enthusiast has speculated that the flight "shadowed" another flight - also a 777 - which was traveling between SE Asia and Europe at the same time. By flying close (above or below) it, the MA flight's radar signature would have blended in with the expected flight, thus allowing it to reach the Stans undetected - and from there it could have landed virtually anywhere. http://keithledgerwood.tumblr.com/post/79838944823/did-malaysian-airlines-370-disappear-using-sia68-sq68

Laguna,

your link is interesting. The reason I don´t believe it is that it would involve a government conspiracy. This would have to involve making an airport and service facilities available to the jihadis, and while some governments (like e.g. Pakistan) are obviously aiding and abetting them discreetly, I simply don´t believe that any government in the region would go this far. That is why I am ruling out the "stolen and landed" theory.

The most scary thing we don't know if this was isolated incident and we are dealing here with mentally incompetent pilot or it is beginning of something bigger that involves Al-Qaeda.

That's true, WilliB - assuming its destination had a functional government. A 777 can be landed on a highway or even on packed dirt, apparently; one does not need an airport, must a rudimentary airstrip.

Anyway, it's all but speculation, but still: That the plane has not been found indicates that it has been hidden, and almost every clue points to a deliberate attempt to hide the plane. For the family members, this must be a living hell.