Editing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappearance theories (section)

==Shoot-down hypothesis==
American political commentator [[Rush Limbaugh]], according to [[CNN]], speculated that the aircraft may have been shot down.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/21/world/asia/missing-plane-mystery-clues-theories/index.html |title=Flight 370: When facts are few, imaginations run wild |publisher=CNN |date=22 March 2014 |access-date=24 March 2014 |author=O'Neill, Ann}}</ref> Supporters of this theory have noted that [[List of airliner shootdown incidents|civilian aircraft have been shot down by military forces in the past]], with [[Iran Air Flight 655]] by the United States in 1988 and [[Korean Air Lines Flight 007|KAL 007]] by the [[Soviet Union]] in 1983 being two frequently cited examples.<ref name=abc>{{cite web |title=Theories Take Flight Over Disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Jet |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/theories-flight-disappearance-malaysia-airlines-jet/story?id=22898735 |author=Colleen Curry |date=13 March 2014 |publisher=ABC News Internet Ventures |access-date=27 March 2014}}</ref> On 19 March 2014, [[news agency]] reporter Scott Mayerowitz of [[Associated Press]] described "Accidental Shootdown" as one of seven "leading, plausible theories", but added that there was "no evidence that Flight&nbsp;370 was brought down by a government entity".<ref name=AP-Mayerowitz-Lowy01a>{{cite web |url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/7-leading-theories-disappearance-flight-370-214822401--finance.html |title=7 leading theories on disappearance of Flight 370 |last=Mayerowitz |first=Scott |website=Yahoo News |agency=[[Associated Press]] |access-date=25 January 2015 |date=19 March 2014}}</ref> A Malaysian defense official, Ackbal bin Haji Abdul Samad, said it was "highly not possible" that his country's air force had shot down the plane.<ref name=FinExpress01a/> According to ''[[The Financial Express (India)|The Financial Express]]'', the [[Malaysian Air Force]] detected the plane on radar while it was in flight, but it took no action because it was believed to be a "friendly" aircraft.<ref name=FinExpress01a>{{cite web |url=http://www.financialexpress.com/news/missing-malaysian-airlines-plane-not-shot-down-defence-official/1234863 |title=Missing Malaysian Airlines MH370 plane not shot down, avers Defence official |work=The Financial Express |date=22 March 2014 |access-date=27 March 2014}}</ref>

In May 2014, author [[Nigel Cawthorne]]'s book ''[[Flight MH370: The Mystery]]'' was published. Cawthorne alleged that after the jet was shot down during a U.S.–Thai [[Joint Strike Fighter]] jet training exercise, searchers intentionally were sent astray as part of a sophisticated cover-up.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/23639246/mh370-may-have-been-shot-down-by-mistake-during-military-operation/ |title=Cover up |website=YahooNews |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140519065213/https://au.news.yahoo.com/world/a/23639246/mh370-may-have-been-shot-down-by-mistake-during-military-operation/ |archive-date=19 May 2014}}</ref> The book received considerable criticism, especially from ''[[The Australian]]'', where it was characterised thus: "Cawthorne undoes everybody's good work by retrieving every obsolete and discredited non-fact from the trash, slapping the whole lot between covers."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/arts/review/flying-low-cashing-in-on-mh370/story-fn9n8gph-1226960235823 |title=Flying low, cashing in on MH370 |newspaper=[[The Australian]] |first=David |last=Free |date=21 June 2014 |access-date=26 June 2014}}</ref> Relatives of those aboard Flight 370 criticised the book as "premature and insensitive".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/malaysia/11078770/MH370-Six-reasons-why-plane-vanished.html |title=MH370: Six 'reasons' why plane vanished |work=The Telegraph |date=8 September 2014 |access-date=19 January 2015 |last=Phillips |first=Tom}}</ref>

In a CNN interview on 24 April 2014, the [[Prime Minister of Malaysia|Malaysian Prime Minister]], [[Najib Razak]], stated only that the radar "tracked an aircraft which did a turn back, but they were not exactly sure whether it was MH370. What they were sure of was that the aircraft was not deemed to be hostile."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/malaysia/10786456/Malaysian-prime-minister-refuses-to-declare-MH370-lost.html |title=Malaysian prime minister refuses to declare MH370 lost |newspaper=The Telegraph |first=David |last=Millward |date=24 April 2014 |access-date=26 April 2014}}</ref>

On 22&nbsp;December 2014 the former head of [[Proteus Airlines]], [[Marc Dugain]], claimed that the plane may have been shot down by U.S. military personnel out of fear of an attack similar to the [[September 11 attacks]] on their Navy Base in [[Diego Garcia]].<ref name=AU>{{cite news |url=http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/former-proteus-airlines-boss-marc-dugain-claims-mh370-may-have-been-shot-down-by-us-military-near-diego-garcia/story-fnizu68q-1227164555636 |title=Former Proteus Airlines boss Marc Dugain claims MH370 may have been shot down by US military near Diego Garcia |work=News.com.au |date=22 December 2014 |access-date=22 December 2014 |archive-date=22 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141222113209/http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/former-proteus-airlines-boss-marc-dugain-claims-mh370-may-have-been-shot-down-by-us-military-near-diego-garcia/story-fnizu68q-1227164555636 |url-status=dead }}</ref> The claims were described by the source article as "wild".<ref name=AU/>