Editing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 disappearance theories

{{Sources|date=November 2023}}{{Short description|Ideas about the plane's disappearance}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{EngvarB|date=February 2015}}
{{MH370}}
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[[Malaysia Airlines Flight 370]] disappeared on 8 March 2014, after departing from [[Kuala Lumpur]] for [[Beijing]], with 227 passengers and 12 crew members on board.<ref>{{cite web|title=The Search for MH370|url=http://gis.usc.edu/msp-resources/infographics/the-search-for-malaysia-airlines-flight-mh370/|website=University of Southern California|access-date=28 January 2015}}</ref> Malaysia's then [[Prime Minister of Malaysia|Prime Minister]], [[Najib Razak]], stated that the aircraft's flight ended somewhere in the Indian Ocean, but no further explanation was given at the time.<ref name="UnsuccessfulSearch">{{cite news|title=Missing Malaysia Airline plane wreckage not in identified area|url=http://www.malaysiasun.com/index.php/sid/222436235/scat/48cba686fe041718/ht/Missing-Malaysia-Airline-plane-wreckage-not-in-identified-area|access-date=29 May 2014|newspaper=Malaysia Sun|archive-date=6 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006122421/http://www.malaysiasun.com/index.php/sid/222436235/scat/48cba686fe041718/ht/Missing-Malaysia-Airline-plane-wreckage-not-in-identified-area|url-status=dead}}</ref> Despite searches finding debris which nearly certainly originated from the crash,<ref name="ATSB Final Report AE-2014-054">{{cite web|url=https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/5773565/operational-search-for-mh370_final_3oct2017.pdf|title=ATSB Transport Safety Report, External Aviation Investigation, AE-2014-054: The Operational Search for MH370|publisher=[[Australian Transport Safety Bureau]]|date=3 October 2017|access-date=7 October 2017|format=Final report|page=106|archive-date=10 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200310104643/https://www.atsb.gov.au/media/5773565/operational-search-for-mh370_final_3oct2017.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="francetvinfo 3 Sept 2015">{{cite news|language=fr|date=3 September 2015|url=http://www.francetvinfo.fr/live/message/55e/862/7a6/674/763/493/562/000.html|publisher=Francetvinfo|title=Le débris d'avion retrouvé fin juillet à La Réunion appartient "avec certitude" au vol MH370, annonce le parquet de Paris}}</ref><ref name=bbc2>{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35888405|title=MH370 search: Mozambique debris 'almost certainly' from missing plane |work= BBC News}}</ref> official announcements were questioned by many critics, and several theories about the disappearance were proposed.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-flight-ended-in-southern-indian-ocean-prime-minister-says/ | title=Grief, anger and more questions after Malaysia declares Flight 370 crashed | work=[[CBS News]] | date=24 March 2014| access-date=24 March 2014| agency=Associated Press}}</ref> Some of these were described as [[conspiracy theories]].<ref name=Brotherton2014/><ref name=suntimes2014/>

==Background==
{{Main|Malaysia Airlines Flight 370}}
[[File:Boeing 777-200ER Malaysia AL (MAS) 9M-MRO - MSN 28420 404 (9272090094).jpg|thumb|The missing aircraft, 9M-MRO, taking off from [[Paris]] in 2011]]
Rob Brotherton, a lecturer in psychology at [[Goldsmiths, University of London]], wrote that conspiracy theories emerge immediately after any catastrophe occurs and conclusive information about why it does so remains unavailable.<ref name=Brotherton2014>{{cite web | url=https://www.newscientist.com/article/dn25260-flight-mh370-the-allure-of-the-conspiracy-theory.html| title=Flight MH370: The allure of the conspiracy theory | work=New Scientist | date=20 March 2014| access-date=25 March 2014| author=Brotherton, Rob}}</ref>

Victims' relatives questioned the veracity of the [[Government of Malaysia|Malaysian government]]'s statements about the demise of the aircraft, and organized a protest at the Malaysian embassy in [[Beijing]] with the goal of forcing the Malaysian government to reveal any withheld information about Flight 370's whereabouts.

According to [[Barbara Demick]] of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'', critics of the Malaysian government's statements also found support in the [[Joint Agency Coordination Centre]]'s announcement on 29 May 2014 that the plane was not in the search area authorities had been combing since April 2014.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.latimes.com/world/asia/la-fg-malaysia-flight-mh370-search-20140529-story.html | title=Missing Malaysia Airlines jet not in search area, officials say | work=Los Angeles Times | date=29 May 2014 | access-date=4 June 2014 | author=Demick, Barbara}}</ref> Other factors involve the lack of a [[distress signal]] from the plane.<ref>{{cite magazine | url=http://time.com/20351/missing-plane-flight-mh370-5-conspiracy-theories/ | title=The Missing Malaysian Plane: 5 Conspiracy Theories | magazine=[[Time (magazine)|Time]] | date=11 March 2014 | access-date=13 May 2014 | author=Sam Frizell}}</ref>

Searches discovered debris which had a very strong likelihood, near certain, of originating from the crash, with definitive fragments first located in 2015.<ref name="ATSB Final Report AE-2014-054" /><ref name="francetvinfo 3 Sept 2015" /><ref name=bbc2 />

===Criticism and response===
Conspiracy-focused internet sites claim that the official statement that the plane crashed into the Indian Ocean is "a blatant cover-up."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.eyeopening.info/2014/03/25/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-now-clearly-government-cover-evidence-contradicts-official-story/|title=Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 Now Clearly A Government Cover-Up: All Evidence Contradicts Official Story|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213171611/http://www.eyeopening.info/2014/03/25/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-now-clearly-government-cover-evidence-contradicts-official-story/|archive-date=13 December 2014|access-date=8 December 2014}}</ref> They note that a [[Boeing 777]] does not have the structural integrity to survive crashing into the ocean, and that it would be comparable to hitting a concrete wall at [[terminal velocity]]. If Flight 370 hit the ocean, they say, it would have been broken into tens of thousands of pieces, many of which float on water (such as the seat cushions) and would be seen washing up on regional shores or easily spotted by search teams.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/9864556/MH370-Distrust-breeds-conspiracy-theories | title=MH370: Distrust breeds conspiracy theories | work=[[Stuff.co.nz]] | date=25 March 2014| access-date=24 March 2014| author=Wen, Philip}}</ref> Those criticisms diminished after several pieces of the aircraft were positively identified in the years after its disappearance.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Scruton |first1=Paul |title=Missing flight MH370 – a visual guide to the parts and debris found so far |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/ng-interactive/2017/jan/17/missing-flight-mh370-a-visual-guide-to-the-parts-and-debris-found-so-far |website=The Guardian|access-date=15 May 2019}}</ref>

Harvard professor [[Cass Sunstein]] noted that the conflicting information initially released by the Malaysian government explains the interest in alternative theories.<ref name="wsj-2014-03-20">{{cite web | url=https://www.wsj.com/video/flight-mh370-why-are-conspiracy-theories-seductive/BA8BBA6E-AB59-4761-933E-D672BCC0F052.html | title=Flight MH370: Why Are Conspiracy Theories Seductive? | work=Wall Street Journal | date=20 March 2014| access-date=26 March 2014}}</ref> Sunstein, who has written on the topic, argued in an interview with ''[[The Wall Street Journal]]'' on 20 March 2014 that conspiracy theories in general often are born out of horrific and disastrous situations because such events make people angry, fearful and looking for a "target".<ref name="wsj-2014-03-20"/>

David Soucie, a former FAA inspector, has said that the theories that have been put forth in this matter are important when there is a lack of knowledge, as the theories and notions help us to consider various possibilities. On 26 March 2014, he stated on [[CNN]]: <blockquote>In an accident investigation, it's a critical part to come up with theories. Especially right now when we don't have anything. We don't have anything tangible. We don't have something to say, hey, yes—because we don't know where that airplane is and we need to find out why. If you take one theory, the airplane would be where we're looking at right now. If you take another theory, where there was nefarious intent, they're trying to avoid radars, the airplane could be somewhere else. If you say it was—whatever it is, you've got to use these theories, weigh them against the facts so you know which one to go to.<ref>[http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1403/26/pmt.01.html CNN Transcripts] – Piers Morgan Live – 26 March 2014. Retrieved 28 March 2014.</ref></blockquote>

Tim Black, deputy editor of ''[[Spiked (magazine)|Spiked]]'', wrote: &nbsp;"...it's in this darkness, this near absence of knowledge [about MH370], that speculation has flourished,"<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/flight-mh370-conspiracy-theorists-adore-a-vacuum/14812 | title=MH370: conspiracy theorists adore a vacuum | work=Spiked | date=19 March 2014 | access-date=25 March 2014 | author=Black, Tim | archive-date=25 July 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170725063206/http://www.spiked-online.com/newsite/article/flight-mh370-conspiracy-theorists-adore-a-vacuum/14812 | url-status=dead }}</ref> and an editorial in the ''[[Chicago Sun-Times]]'' not only stated that "conspiracy theories fill a vacuum when facts are scarce," but also urged governments to search for the plane to debunk these theories and give victims' family members peace of mind.<ref name=suntimes2014>{{cite web | url=http://www.suntimes.com/opinions/26436099-474/conspiracy-theories-dont-help-to-understand-cause-of-malaysian-jets-disappearance.html | title=Conspiracy theories don't help to understand cause of Malaysian jet's disappearance | work=Chicago Sun-Times | date=26 March 2014 | access-date=27 March 2014 | archive-date=15 October 2014 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015085438/http://www.suntimes.com/opinions/26436099-474/conspiracy-theories-dont-help-to-understand-cause-of-malaysian-jets-disappearance.html | url-status=dead }}</ref>

The common hypothesis, cited also here, that MH370 avoided Indonesian radar is based only on a statement that the plane was not observed by Indonesia.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/untrue-that-mh370-avoided-indonesian-radar-hishammuddin-says |title='Untrue' that MH370 avoided Indonesian radar, Hishammuddin says- Malaysia- The Malay Mail Online |author=Clara Chooi |newspaper=The Malay Mail Online |date=7 April 2014 |access-date=24 April 2014}}</ref>

==Pilot suicide/mass murder==

<!-- Statements about the Captain should only reference facts about his personal life and events leading up to the disappearance of MH370 which may have relevance to his mental status at the time of the flight. DO NOT post statements of a speculative nature about possible motivation...eg. he went on a final 'joyride', possibly flew to incapacitate passengers, hijacked the plane (beyond any official statements about this possibility)...unless and until firm statements are made publicly by investigators. -->
Shortly after Flight 370's disappearance, media reports revealed that Captain Zaharie Ahmad Shah's wife and three children moved out of his house the day before the disappearance; and a friend claimed that Captain Shah was seeing another woman and Shah's relationship with her was also in trouble.<ref name=MYChronicle-pilots>{{cite web|title=FBI to Quiz Wife of MH370 Pilot Amid Talk of Cockpit Hijack|url=http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=249772:fbi-to-quiz-wife-of-mh370-pilot-amid-talk-of-cockpit-hijack&Itemid=2&tmpl=component&print=1|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714170301/http://www.malaysia-chronicle.com/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=249772:fbi-to-quiz-wife-of-mh370-pilot-amid-talk-of-cockpit-hijack&Itemid=2&tmpl=component&print=1|archive-date=14 July 2014|website=Malaysia Chronicle|access-date=3 July 2014|date=24 March 2014|quote=Police are also examining reports that he received a two-minute phone call shortly before take-off from a mystery woman using a mobile number obtained using a false identity.|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="NYDN captain behaviour">{{cite web|last1=Moran|first1=Lee|last2=Siemaszko|first2=Corey|title=Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 pilot' in 'no state of mind to be flying,' says friend, as search for missing plane explores possible debris southwest of Australia|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/flight-370-pilot-friend-shouldn-flying-article-1.1734998|website=New York Daily News|access-date=3 July 2014|date=26 March 2014}}</ref> Claims of domestic problems have been denied by Shah's family.<ref name="Australian-pilot behaviour">{{cite web|last1=Sheridan|first1=Michael|title=Suspicion falls again on Malaysia Airlines flight 370's captain Zaharie Shah|url=http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/aviation/suspicion-falls-again-on-malaysia-airlines-flight-370s-captain-zaharie-shah/story-e6frg95x-1226962734150|website=The Australian|access-date=3 July 2014|date=22 June 2014}}</ref> A fellow pilot and long-time associate of Shah stated the captain was "terribly upset"<ref name=NZHerald-pilot>{{cite web|last1=Tan|first1=Lincoln|title=Flight MH370: Pilot in wrong state of mind to fly – friend|url=http://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=11226334|website=New Zealand Herald|access-date=3 July 2014|date=26 March 2014}}</ref> that his marriage was falling apart.<ref name="NYDN captain behaviour" /> Police were also investigating reports that Shah received a two-minute phone call prior to the flight's departure from an unidentified woman using a mobile phone number obtained with a false identity.<ref name=MYChronicle-pilots /> Furthermore, Captain Shah was also a supporter of Malaysian opposition politician [[Anwar Ibrahim]], who [[Anwar Ibrahim sodomy trials#Acquittal overturned|was sentenced to jail]] on 7 March after an earlier acquittal on sodomy charges was overturned in a move viewed as politically motivated.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Subramaniam|first1=Pathma|title=Anwar given 5 years' jail after appellate court reverses sodomy acquittal |url=http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/anwar-acquittal-reversed|website=MalayMailOnline|access-date=3 July 2014|date=7 March 2014}}</ref> Shah was in the courtroom the day before the flight.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Dick |first=Monica |date=2014-11-05 |title=Pondering the preposterous |url=https://www.wingsmagazine.com/pondering-the-preposterous-11202/ |access-date=2024-03-06 |website=Wings Magazine |language=en-US}}</ref>

Investigators noted strange behaviour by Shah from conducting 170 interviews—namely, that the Captain had made no social or professional plans for after 8 March, when Flight 370 disappeared.<ref name="Pilot behaviour" /> However, according to the French journalist Florence de Changy who wrote a book about the flight, dismissing "100 per cent of the official narrative",<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.scmp.com/news/hong-kong/politics/article/1992860/mh370-conspiracy-author-florence-de-changy-says-officials|title=MH370 conspiracy? Author Florence de Changy says officials misled the public about ill-fated plane|date=21 July 2016|newspaper=[[South China Morning Post]]|access-date=12 March 2019}}</ref> Shah made an appointment with his dentist to get back his [[Crown (dental restoration)|tooth crown]]  when the dentist phoned him a few days before 8 March.<ref>{{Cite book | author = Florence de Changy |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=eKeqCwAAQBAJ | title = Le Vol MH370 n'a pas disparu | location = France |publisher=Les Arènes |year=2016 |isbn=978-2352045328}}</ref>{{page needed|date=November 2018}} News reports about the Captain's lack of social plans and flight simulator exercises cite results of the police enquiry into the pilots, which have been shared with some of the investigation team but have not been released publicly. However, news reports on 23 July 2014 stated that the police considered the possible culpability of all those onboard the plane, and identified the captain as the prime suspect—if it is proven human intervention was involved.<ref name="Pilot behaviour" /> 

The United States' [[Federal Bureau of Investigation]] reconstructed the deleted data from Captain Shah's home [[flight simulator]]; a Malaysian government spokesman indicated that "nothing sinister" had been found on it.<ref name="ABCus_2014-04-02"/><ref name="BBC_2014-03-29"/> However, ''[[The Sunday Times]]'' later reported that among deleted flight paths performed on the flight simulator, investigators found a flight path into the Southern Ocean where a simulated landing was made on an island with a small runway.<ref name="mirror.co.uk"/><ref name="Australian-pilot behaviour" /><ref name="Pilot behaviour">{{cite web|title=Malaysian police investigation names MH370 pilot 'prime suspect'|url=http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/malaysian-police-investigation-names-mh370-pilot-prime-suspect/story-fnizu68q-1226962811653|website=News.com.au|access-date=3 July 2014|date=23 June 2014|archive-date=2 July 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140702153926/http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/malaysian-police-investigation-names-mh370-pilot-prime-suspect/story-fnizu68q-1226962811653|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last1=Sheridan|first1=Michael|title=MH370 pilot 'chief suspect' |url=http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/world_news/Asia/article1425492.ece|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140622143549/http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/world_news/Asia/article1425492.ece|url-status=dead|archive-date=22 June 2014|website=The Sunday Times|access-date=3 July 2014|date=22 June 2014}}</ref><!-- Note: Articles discussing the flight simulator revelation all reference the The Sunday Times article, which is behind a pay wall. The TST article is listed as a reference, but the editor who added it was unable to verify that article's claims, only assuming that other new source's claims citing that article are accurate. The "The Australian" article lists "Michael Sheridan" (author of TST article) and "The Times" at top and may be identical to the TST article. -->
In 2016, a leaked American document stated that a route on the pilot's home flight simulator closely matching the projected flight over the Indian Ocean was found during the FBI analysis of the hard drive of the computer used for the flight simulator.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Wise|first1=Jeff|title=Exclusive: MH370 Pilot Flew a Suicide Route on His Home Simulator Closely Matching Final Flight|url=http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/07/mh370-pilot-flew-suicide-route-on-home-simulator.html|website=New York Magazine|publisher=New York Media |date=22 July 2016|access-date=22 July 2016}}</ref> This was later confirmed by the ATSB, and by the Malaysian government.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.cbsnews.com/news/malaysia-confirms-flight-370-pilot-plotted-fatal-route/ |website=CBS News |title=Malaysia confirms Flight 370 pilot plotted fatal route |date=5 August 2016 |access-date=15 May 2018}}</ref> In the ATSB's 2017 report "The Operational Search for MH370," new details were provided regarding the flight simulator path. It had been flown five weeks prior to the disappearance on February 2nd and was reconstructed from data deleted on February 3rd. The simulated aircraft was a B777-200LR. The first data point showed the flight beginning in Kuala Lumpur. Subsequent data points indicated the aircraft flying northwest along the Strait of Malacca before tracking southeast to the fifth data point, located deep in the southern Indian Ocean, where fuel exhaustion occurred. In the sixth and final data point, the altitude was manually set to 4000ft, with the aircraft observed in a nose-down pitch of 5°. The report states:<ref>{{cite web |title=The Operational Search for MH370 |url=https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/2014/aair/ae-2014-054 |website=ATSB}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Missing pilot's flight simulator data deleted |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2014/3/19/missing-pilots-flight-simulator-data-deleted |publisher=Al Jazeera |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240310144236/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2014/3/19/missing-pilots-flight-simulator-data-deleted |archive-date=10 March 2024}}</ref>

{{Blockquote|"There were enough similarities to the flight path of MH370 for the ATSB to carefully consider the possible implications for the underwater search area. These considerations included the impact on the search area if the aircraft had been either glided after fuel exhaustion or ditched under power prior to fuel exhaustion with active control of the aircraft from the cockpit."}}

[[Tony Abbott]] was [[Prime Minister of Australia]] when MH370 disappeared. In February 2020, six years after the plane disappeared, Abbott disclosed in a Sky News documentary: "My very clear understanding, from the very top levels of the Malaysian government, is that from very, very early on, they thought it was [[Murder–suicide|murder-suicide]] by the pilot."<ref> {{Cite web |last=Lavalette |first=Tristan |date=19 February 2020 |title=Abbott says top Malaysian leaders suspected pilot of MH370 |url=https://apnews.com/general-news-3feb92bc2b2105c4bce97d06316e9e8c |access-date= |website=AP News}}</ref> Shah's family vehemently denied the possibility of pilot suicide.<ref>{{cite news|title='I know my dad well', says Capt Zaharie's son|url=http://www2.nst.com.my/nation/general/i-know-my-dad-well-says-capt-zaharie-s-son-1.534266#ixzz3TnCE2mM1|access-date=8 March 2015|work=New Straits Times|date=27 March 2014}}</ref>

Many aviation experts believe, and some analyses of the flap and flaperon debris suggest, that the shearing damage evident on the trailing edges of the [[Flap (aeronautics)|flap]] and [[flaperon]], coupled with the minimal damage observed on the leading edges, strongly suggests a controlled ditching as the likely end-of-flight scenario. This perspective contrasts sharply with the ATSB's hypothesis of a high-speed, uncontrolled plummet following fuel exhaustion. The distinct lack of substantial leading edge damage and clean shearing of the trailing edges contradicts what would be expected from a high-velocity impact.<ref>{{cite web |author1=DGA Techniques aéronautiques |title=SAFETY INVESTIGATION REPORT MH370 (9M-MRO) |url=https://www.mot.gov.my/my/Laporan%20Siasatan%20Mh370/02-Appendices/Appendices%20Set%202%20-%202%20Appendices%201.12A-1%20to%201.12A-2%20Main/Appendix-1.12A-2-Item1Flaperon%28Main%29.pdf |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240528150817/https://www.mot.gov.my/my/Laporan%20Siasatan%20Mh370/02-Appendices/Appendices%20Set%202%20-%202%20Appendices%201.12A-1%20to%201.12A-2%20Main/Appendix-1.12A-2-Item1Flaperon(Main).pdf |archive-date=28 May 2024 |website=Ministry of Transport Malaysia}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Kamoulakos |first1=Argiris |title=Aspects of analysis and simulation of a flaperon ditching scenario |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/342020623}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last1=Vance |first1=Larry |title=Lessons Learned From MH370 Investigation |url=https://medium.com/@LarryVanceAviation/lessons-learned-from-mh370-investigation-409bb61d5737}}</ref>

A book, ''Goodnight Malaysian 370'', was published in August 2014 by New Zealanders Geoff Taylor and Ewan Wilson; the authors blamed a deliberate act of the pilot for the aircraft's disappearance, but admitted they were not able to "provide any conclusive evidence to support his theory" nor any motive.<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.stuff.co.nz/world/asia/10156897/MH370-No-accident-say-NZ-authors |title= MH370 No accident say NZ authors |publisher= Stuff/Fairfax |date=13 June 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.stuff.co.nz/waikato-times/news/9851837/Kiwi-pilot-dismisses-missing-plane-fire-theory |title= Kiwi pilot dismisses missing plane fire theory |publisher=Stuff/Fairfax |date=21 March 2014}}</ref> 

In 2015, a former British Airways senior Boeing 777 pilot, Simon Hardy, told [[BBC News Online|BBC News]] that the plane's route was "probably very accurate flying rather than just a coincidence", and noted that the aircraft's turn toward the north-west over the Malacca Strait allowed a clear view of the captain's home island of [[Penang]]:<ref>{{cite news|last1=Westcott|first1=Richard|title=Flight MH370: Could it have been suicide?|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-31736835|access-date=8 March 2015|work=BBC News|date=6 March 2015}}</ref>

{{Blockquote|"Someone was taking a long, emotional look at Penang... there were actually three turns, not one. Someone was looking at Penang."}}

In May 2018, Hardy repeated his claim on ''[[60 Minutes (Australian TV program)|60 Minutes Australia]]'' that the captain used the flight as a murder–suicide and had deliberately flown the plane over his hometown of Penang before turning right and ditching the plane over the [[Indian Ocean]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Palin|first1=Megan |title=Chilling MH370 discovery about how pilot flew undetected, according to aviation experts|access-date=14 May 2018|work=news.com.au|via=[[The New Zealand Herald]]|date=14 May 2018|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm?c_id=2&objectid=12050868}}</ref> He said they found these results by reconstructing the captain's flight plan from the military radar and that the captain had avoided detection of the plane by military radar by flying along the border of Malaysia and Thailand, crossing in and out of each country's airspaces.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/travel/news-and-advice/mh370-malaysia-airlines-captain-deliberate-plane-crash-murder-suicide-zaharie-amad-shah-a8350621.html|title=MH370 investigators reveal startling murder-suicide theory over missing plane|date=14 May 2018|website=The Independent|access-date=12 March 2019}}</ref>

The cockpit had the mandated [[Airport security repercussions due to the September 11 attacks#Increased security on aircraft|anti-hijacker fortified doors]] that could prevent locked-out crew or passengers from interfering with a suicide or hijacking into the [[Southern Ocean]].<ref name=Landau04-14>{{cite news|last=Landau|first=Joel|title=Malaysia Airlines plane may have been 'thrown around like a fighter jet' by a co-pilot: report|url=http://nydn.us/1jCjlkm|access-date=24 April 2014|newspaper=New York Daily News|date=13 April 2014}}{{Dead link|date=October 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> A British television documentary, broadcast in March 2024, suggested that Captain Zaharie Ahmad could have selected manual control of the cabin conditioning system to deprive all occupants of air.<ref name="vanish">{{cite web |title= Why Planes Vanish: The Hunt for MH370  |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001x0yh/why-planes-vanish-the-hunt-for-mh370 |publisher=BBC iPlayer |date=6 March 2024|access-date=7 March 2024}}</ref>

In 2022, a retired French captain [[Aircraft pilot|pilot]] and senior [[satellite]] engineer released a long report about scientific-based figures arguing of a pilot suicide, confirmed on various [[Flight simulator|plane simulators]] in France.<ref>{{Cite web |first1=Patrick|last1= Blelly |first2=Jean-Luc|last2=Marchand |title=Technical and Aeronautical analysis from take-off to the end of the flight |url=https://www.mh370-caption.net/wp-content/uploads/3-known-trajectory-and-recalculated-trajectory.pdf}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |first1=Patrick|last1=Blelly|first2=Jean-Luc|last2=Marchand|title=Analyse technique et aéronautique depuis le décollage jusqu'à la fin du vol |url=https://www.mh370-caption.net/wp-content/uploads/Analyse-complete-VOL-MH370-Francaise.pdf}}</ref>

==Hijacking==
The possibility of a simple hijacking has been brought up by various news outlets, including [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]] and the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]''.<ref name=abc/><ref name=hope>{{cite news | title=Malaysia Airlines Flight 370: Hijacking theory gives relatives hope | url=http://www.latimes.com/world/worldnow/la-fg-wn-malaysia-airlines-flight-370-hijack-family-philip-wood-20140316,0,4194274.story | author=Barbara Demick | date=16 March 2014| newspaper=Los Angeles Times | access-date=27 March 2014}}</ref> Speculation has mounted about the possibility that hijackers took the plane to a remote island, although no group has claimed responsibility;<ref name=abc/> unofficial researchers have identified more than 600 possible runways at which the plane was capable of landing.<ref name=hope/> No confirmation has been received from Malaysian officials.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.sky.com/story/1226362/deliberate-action-diverted-missing-plane|title='Deliberate Action' Diverted Missing Plane|date=15 March 2014|publisher=BSkyB|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140316111941/https://news.sky.com/story/1226362/deliberate-action-diverted-missing-plane|archive-date=16 March 2014|access-date=27 March 2014}}</ref> The credibility of several hijacking theories have become further marginalized following the discovery of the first definitive fragments of MH370 wreckage in July 2015.<ref>{{cite news | title='Deliberate Action' Diverted Missing Plane | url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/malaysia/11772187/MH370-debris-found-live.html | date=31 July 2015| newspaper=Telegraph | access-date=16 September 2016}}</ref>

===Terrorist attack===
Shortly after the aircraft disappeared, it was claimed that it may have been an act of terrorism, possibly a [[conspiracy]] attack.<ref>{{cite news|title=Malaysia Airline MH370: 9/11-style terror allegations resurface in case of lost plane|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/malaysia/10700652/Malaysia-Airline-MH370-911-style-terror-allegations-resurface-in-case-of-lost-plane.html|access-date=18 April 2014|newspaper=The Daily Telegraph}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=These are all the Internet's 'best' theories on Malaysia Flight 370s disappearance|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/style-blog/wp/2014/03/18/these-are-all-the-internets-best-theories-on-malaysia-flight-370s-disappearance/|access-date=18 April 2014|newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|last=[[Pamela Geller]]|title=Flight MH370: Terrorism expert backs theory of pilot suicide flight|date=26 March 2014|url=http://pamelageller.com/2014/03/flight-mh370-terrorism-expert-backs-theory-pilot-suicide-flight.html/|access-date=18 April 2014|archive-date=31 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140331125927/http://pamelageller.com/2014/03/flight-mh370-terrorism-expert-backs-theory-pilot-suicide-flight.html/|url-status=dead}}</ref>
Between 9 and 14 March 2014, media mogul [[Rupert Murdoch]] tweeted that Flight 370's disappearance "confirms conspiracy turning to make trouble for China {{sic}}." He later suggested the flight might have been hidden in northern Pakistan, "like [[Osama bin Laden|Bin Laden]]". These remarks have not been confirmed, and were characterized as conspiracy theories by Shiv Malik in ''[[The Guardian]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.theguardian.com/media/2014/mar/16/rupert-murdoch-tweets-conspiracy-theories-flight-mh370-disappearance | title=Rupert Murdoch tweets all kinds of crazy over flight MH370 disappearance | work=The Guardian | date=16 March 2014| access-date=25 March 2014| author=Malik, Shiv}}</ref> The following month, the Russian newspaper ''[[Moskovskij Komsomolets]]'' endorsed a similar theory, claiming that "unknown terrorists" had hijacked the plane, flown it to [[Afghanistan]], and then held the crew and passengers hostage.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/mh370-hijacked-afghanistan-russian-intelligence-3407468 | title=MH370 'hijacked and in Afghanistan': Russian intelligence source claims all passengers and crew are alive but held hostage | work=Daily Mirror | date=13 April 2014 | access-date=27 May 2014 | author=Richards, Chris}}</ref>

===North Korea===
A story circulated on [[Reddit]] that MH370 had sufficient fuel to be hijacked to [[North Korea]] as was done in 1969 with a [[Korean Air Lines YS-11 hijacking|Korean Air Lines YS-11]].<ref>{{cite news|last1=Hartley-Parkinson|first1=Richard | title=Flight MH370: 17 conspiracy theories 100 days on from plane's disappearance | url=https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/flight-mh370-17-conspiracy-theories-3620032 | date=15 June 2014 | newspaper=Daily Mirror | access-date=4 September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Masi|first1=Alessandria|title=Malaysia Air Conspiracy Theory Roundup|url=http://www.vocativ.com/world/malaysia/malaysia-air-conspiracy-theory-roundup/|access-date=4 September 2014|publisher=[[Vocativ]]|date=10 March 2014|archive-date=9 August 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140809104616/http://www.vocativ.com/world/malaysia/malaysia-air-conspiracy-theory-roundup/|url-status=dead}}</ref>

===Acquisition of Freescale staff===
A variety of social media posts and email [[chain letters]] claim that a patent (#[https://patents.google.com/patent/US8671381 8671381]) was approved days after the disappearance of the MH370, and the right to the patent was split five ways—20% to [[Freescale Semiconductor]] and 20% each to four employees, all of whom were passengers on the plane.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/9988150/12-bizarre-MH370-conspiracy-theories|title=12 bizarre MH370 conspiracy theories|last=Pritchard|first=Tom|work=[[Stuff.co.nz]]|date=29 April 2014}}</ref> The patent deals with fabrication of integrated circuits on a semiconductor wafer. The fact-checking website [[snopes.com]] suggests that there is no evidence that the four inventors listed on the patent application were on the aircraft passenger list, nor that they were entitled to a 20% share of the patent, and it says it is unlikely that their share would revert to Freescale on their death as presented in the email.<ref>{{cite web|title=Patent Pending|url=http://www.snopes.com/politics/conspiracy/malaysiapatent.asp|website=Snopes.com|date=13 March 2014 |access-date=23 June 2014}}</ref>

===Diego Garcia===
Conspiracy theorists have suggested that MH370 was either captured by [[United States Navy SEALs|U.S. Navy SEALs]] and then flown to the [[United States Navy|U.S. Naval base]] on the atoll of [[Diego Garcia]]<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-26609687 |title=Missing Malaysia plane: 10 theories examined |work=BBC News |date=19 March 2014|access-date=26 March 2014|author=De Castella, Tom}}</ref> in the [[British Indian Ocean Territory]] to bring to justice Chinese computer scientists believed to be responsible for hacking attacks on U.S. Department of Defense computer servers or that the plane landed at the base directly after being instructed to travel there. The latter theory was raised at a [[White House]] daily briefing on 18 March, whereupon press secretary [[Jay Carney]] responded, "I'll rule that one out."<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/mar/18/mh370-missing-plane-search-live |title=MH370: Ban on overflights and delays in sharing data hamper search |work=The Guardian |date=18 March 2014 |access-date=26 March 2014 |author=Farrell, Paul}}</ref> Underpinning the Diego Garcia theory were several elements, one of which was the co-pilot's mobile phone contact and the plane's westward turn, both of which were consistent with a flight path toward the island.{{cn|date=July 2023}}

In that vein, it was reported by the ''[[Daily Mirror]]'', without giving a concrete source, that the captain had trained in landing on an Indian Ocean island with a short runway, using a flight simulator in his home computer.<ref name="mirror.co.uk">{{Cite web |last1=Richards |first1=Chris |last2=Warburton |first2=Dan |date=23 June 2014 |title=Flight MH370: Missing jet pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah is prime suspect because he cleared his diary |url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/news/world-news/flight-mh370-official-police-investigation-3741513 |access-date=3 July 2014 |website=The Mirror}}</ref> Several mass media sources reported that the captain had trained using his aviasimulator to land on five runways—each at least {{convert|1000|m|mi}} long—in the Indian Ocean region, namely Diego Garcia and [[Male International Airport]] (MLE) and other airstrips in India and Sri Lanka.<ref name="CNN-DG">{{cite news|url=http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1114188|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140503043749/http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1114188|archive-date=3 May 2014|title=Flight MH370 Facts|date=29 March 2014|access-date=7 April 2015|url-status=dead|publisher=Mediaviews CNN iReport}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.themalaymailonline.com/malaysia/article/cops-find-five-indian-ocean-practice-runways-in-mh370-pilots-simulator-bh-r|title=Cops find five Indian Ocean practice runways in MH370 pilot's simulator, BH reports |date=18 March 2014|publisher=malaymail Online|access-date=2015-04-07}}</ref>

These allegations were disputed by the FBI, which reported that after analyzing the impounded flight simulator, it had found "nothing suspicious whatsoever" and said that the ''Mirror''{{'}}s reports about the simulator's contents were "unsubstantiated and unsourced".<ref name="FBISimulator">{{cite web|title=FBI Finishes Probe into Malaysia Airlines Captain's Flight Simulator|url=https://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2014/04/no-clues-to-missing-malaysia-airlines-plane-in-captains-flight-simulator/|publisher=ABC News|access-date=8 December 2014}}</ref><ref name="MirrorUnsubstantiated">{{cite news|title=FBI says nothing sinister on pilot's simulator as search for missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 shifts to new area west of Perth|url=http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/fbi-says-nothing-sinister-on-pilots-simulator-as-search-for-missing-malaysia-airlines-flight-mh370-shifts-to-new-area-west-of-perth/story-fnizu68q-1226868639268|work=news.com.au|access-date=8 December 2014|archive-date=13 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213010119/http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/fbi-says-nothing-sinister-on-pilots-simulator-as-search-for-missing-malaysia-airlines-flight-mh370-shifts-to-new-area-west-of-perth/story-fnizu68q-1226868639268|url-status=dead}}</ref> Giving a new twist to the MH370 missing story, a former French airline boss has claimed that the Malaysia Airlines flight was shot down by the U.S. military near their base on Diego Garcia.<ref name="frenchboss">{{cite web|title=Missing MH370 Was Shot Down by US Military, Claims Former French Airline Boss|url=http://defenceradar.com/2014/12/23/missing-mh370-was-shot-down-by-us-military-claims-former-french-airline-boss/|date=23 December 2014|access-date=23 December 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141223114837/http://defenceradar.com/2014/12/23/missing-mh370-was-shot-down-by-us-military-claims-former-french-airline-boss/|archive-date=23 December 2014|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref>

In an article published on 18 March 2014, journalists Farah Ahmed and Ahmed Naif of the [[Maldives|Maldivian]] newspaper ''[[Haveeru]]'' wrote: "...several residents of [[Kudahuvadhoo|Kuda Huvadhoo]] told ''Haveeru'' on Tuesday that they saw a 'low flying jumbo jet' at around 06:15 on March 8. They said that it was a white aircraft, with red stripes across it—which is what the Malaysia Airlines flights typically look like. Eyewitnesses from the Kuda Huvadhoo concurred that the jet was traveling North to South-East, towards the Southern tip of the Maldives—Addu. They also noted the incredibly loud noise that the flight made when it flew over the island. 'I've never seen a jet flying so low over our island before. We've seen seaplanes, but I'm sure that this was not one of those. I could even make out the doors on the plane clearly.' said an eyewitness. 'It's not just me either, several other residents have reported seeing the exact same thing. Some people got out of their houses to see what was causing the tremendous noise too.' Mohamed Zaheem, the Island Councilor of Kuda Huvadhoo, said that the residents of the island had spoken about the incident."<ref>{{Cite news |last1=Farah |first1=Ahmed |last2=Naif |first2=Ahmed |date=18 March 2014 |title=Maldives island residents report sighting of 'low flying jet' |url=http://www.haveeru.com.mv/news/54062 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150309021246/http://www.haveeru.com.mv/news/54062 |archive-date=9 March 2015 |access-date=8 March 2015 |work=[[Haveeru Daily]]}}</ref>

The discovery in late July 2015 of debris from a Boeing 777, on a beach on [[Réunion]] island, east of [[Madagascar]], suspected (and later deemed "highly likely")<ref name=BBC33794012>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-33794012 |title=Plane debris is from missing MH370 |work=BBC News Online |access-date=5 August 2015}}</ref><ref>Shahrestani, Vin [https://web.archive.org/web/20150806010230/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/mh370/11779673/MH370-Malaysian-government-confirms-debris-is-from-a-Boeing-777.html "MH370: Malaysian government confirms debris is from a Boeing 777"] The ''Telegraph'' (UK), 5 August 2015</ref> to be from MH370, quickly led to renewed Internet speculation that the plane had been shot down near Diego Garcia, which is {{convert|1475|mi|km}} away from Réunion,<ref name="Independent31July2015a">{{cite news |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/asia/mh370-debris-discovery-sends-conspiracy-theories-into-overdrive-about-shotdown-plane-10430576.html |title=MH370 'debris' discovery sends conspiracy theories into overdrive about 'shot-down plane'|newspaper=The Independent|author=Lizzie Dearden| date=31 July 2015|access-date=6 August 2015}}</ref> out of fears of a terrorist attack.<ref name=Independent31July2015a/> However, oceanographers such as Professor Charitha Pattiaratchi from the [[University of Western Australia]] said that "the arrival of MH370 debris in Réunion would conform to [[Indian Ocean Gyre|the expected path of ocean currents]] from the point in its flight path where it was believed to have crashed".<ref name="Independent31July2015a"/> Many people, including some of those who believed the plane had landed safely on Diego Garcia (or elsewhere), quickly dismissed the debris as fake.<ref name=Independent31July2015a/>

===Phantom cellphone theory===
Some had speculated that the passengers were still alive but could not answer their cellphones—sometimes known as the "phantom cellphone theory". This was based on early reports that family members of Flight 370 passengers heard ringing (as opposed to a busy/off signal) while calling the passengers' phones, though this was after the disappearance.<ref name=Pickell>{{cite web | url=http://www.boston.com/news/source/2014/03/9_crazy_conspiracy_theories_about_malaysian_airlines_flight.html | title=9 crazy conspiracy theories about Malaysia Airlines flight 370 | work=Boston.com| date=12 March 2014| access-date=24 March 2014| author=Pickell, Jack}}</ref> However, this was later challenged by Jeff Kagan, a wireless analyst, who in an email to [[NBC News]] explained that the network may still produce "[[Ringback tone|ringbacks]]" as it searches for a connection, even if the cellphone has been destroyed.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/missing-jet/malaysia-airlines-passengers-phones-ringing-maybe-not-n49371 | title=Malaysia Airlines Passengers' Phones Ringing? Maybe Not | work=NBC News | date=10 March 2014| access-date=25 March 2014| author=Coldewey, Devin}}</ref>

==Fire==
A number of theories suggest that the disappearance may have been the result of a fire in the cockpit, cargo compartment, landing gear, or another part of the plane.

In an earlier incident involving a Boeing 777, on 29 July 2011, [[EgyptAir Flight 667]] suffered an intense oxygen-fed cockpit fire while still on the ground which destroyed the flight controls, the instruments and burnt a hole through the hull of the aircraft. Despite the arrival of firefighters within three minutes, the fire took 90 minutes to extinguish.{{Citation needed|date=October 2019}} Malaysia Air's maintenance records for the 777 aircraft are required to include information on whether the FAA-mandated fix<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2012-07-12/html/2012-15893.htm |title=Federal Register, Volume 77 Issue 134 (Thursday, July 12, 2012) |publisher=Government Printing Office www.gpo.gov |date=12 July 2012 |access-date=26 April 2014}}</ref> to the wiring near the co-pilot's oxygen hose and replacement of the oxygen hose with one without metallic components was performed. While not conclusive proof, none of the washed-up wreckage exhibited any signs of fire damage. Debris from MH370 was discovered in February 2016 that seemed to indicate burn marks, but expert analysis by the NTSB showed it was just resin discoloring the wreckage.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2017-01-17 |title=MH370: The key pieces of debris found by the public |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-37820122 |access-date=2024-03-26 |work=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref>

Another suggestion is that the pilots had turned back and were attempting an emergency landing at the nearest suitable airport in [[Northern Malaya|Northern Malaysia]], perhaps [[Penang International Airport]] or [[Langkawi International Airport]] (Langkawi Island), a {{convert|13000|ft|km|adj=mid|-long}} airstrip with an approach over water with no obstacles. The emergency may have been due to an incident similar to the 11 July 1991 accident involving a Douglas DC-8, [[Nigeria Airways Flight 2120]], where a tire caught fire on takeoff, and the ensuing conflagration led to the destruction of the aircraft with the loss of 261 lives.<ref name=Goodfellow2014>{{cite news|last=Goodfellow|first=Chris|title=A Startlingly Simple Theory About the Missing Malaysia Airlines Jet|url=https://www.wired.com/2014/03/mh370-electrical-fire/|access-date=24 April 2014|newspaper=Wired|date=18 March 2014}}</ref> In another accident, involving a fire on a [[McDonnell Douglas MD-11]] on 2 September 1998, [[Swissair Flight 111]] from New York to Geneva developed a cockpit fire in the electrical wiring that spread rapidly, leading to a loss of flight instruments and control. The aircraft crashed into the Atlantic Ocean with the loss of 229 lives, 8 kilometres (5.0&nbsp;mi) from shore, southwest of [[Halifax Stanfield International Airport|Halifax International Airport]], Nova Scotia, where the plane was attempting an emergency landing. In the Swissair case, the transponders and communications systems failed due to fire and heat damage in the avionics circuit breaker panel.

==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/>

==Cyberattack==
The hypothesis that a [[cyberattack]] may have been carried out on Flight 370 has been raised, primarily based on statements made by Sally Leivesley, a former scientific advisor to the UK government.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.ibtimes.com/new-malaysia-airlines-flight-mh370-cyber-hijack-theory-emerges-after-vulnerabilities-1561723?ft=74gk7 | title=New Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 'Cyber Hijack' Theory Emerges After 'Vulnerabilities' Found in Inflight System| website=[[International Business Times]] | date=16 March 2014 | first1=Philip | last1=Ross | access-date=23 March 2018}}</ref> Whether existing security on commercial flights is sufficient to prevent such an attack is also a matter of debate, although [[Boeing]] has dismissed the possibility. A spokeswoman for the company, Gayla Keller, said that they were "confident in the robust protection of all flight[-]critical systems and inability for a hacker to gain access by either external or internal means on the 777 and all Boeing airplanes."<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.wtop.com/215/3589889/Boeing-rules-out-777-cyber-sabotage | title=Boeing rules out cyber sabotage connection to missing plane | work=[[WTOP-FM]] | date=25 March 2014| access-date=30 March 2014| author=Green, J.J.}}</ref>

While supporters of this theory have cited Hugo Teso's app which hacked into pilot-training software, which Teso presented at a conference in April 2013, the [[Federal Aviation Administration]] and other major governmental bodies dismissed the significance of the app. They stated that the software on an actual plane would be different from the software on which Teso had tested his app.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Security-Watch/Cyber-Conflict-Monitor/2014/0324/Malaysia-Airlines-Flight-MH370-Are-planes-vulnerable-to-cyber-attack-video | title=Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370: Are planes vulnerable to cyber-attack? (+video) | work=Christian Science Monitor | date=24 March 2014 | access-date=25 March 2014 | author=Clayton, Mark | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140325051831/http://www.csmonitor.com/World/Security-Watch/Cyber-Conflict-Monitor/2014/0324/Malaysia-Airlines-Flight-MH370-Are-planes-vulnerable-to-cyber-attack-video | archive-date=25 March 2014 | url-status=dead | df=dmy-all }}</ref>

== Vertical entry into the sea ==
[[Texas A&M University]] mathematics professor [[Goong Chen]] has argued that the plane may have entered the sea vertically; any other angle of entry would have splintered the airplane to many pieces, which would have necessarily been found already.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.math.tamu.edu/~goong.chen/mh370.pdf|title=Some comments, questions and answers regarding MH370 (related to the recent work by G. Chen et al.)|website=Math.tamu.edu|access-date=14 March 2023|archive-date=28 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228224915/https://www.math.tamu.edu/~goong.chen/mh370.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://edition.cnn.com/2014/03/21/us/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-theories/|title=MH370 possibly plunged straight into ocean, expert says|author=Michael Martinez|author2= Don Melvin|date=14 March 2023|website=Cnn.com}}</ref>

==MH17 and QZ8501 connections==
On 17 July 2014, [[Malaysia Airlines Flight 17]] was shot down over Ukraine. Because it, like Flight 370, was also a Boeing 777, some conspiracy theorists have suggested that the plane that crashed in Ukraine was actually Flight 370. This is based in part on photographs of the crash scene, which conspiracy theorists claim show that the plane that crashed in Ukraine had structural similarities to MH370. Experts have dismissed this theory and argued that it is merely coincidental that both planes involved belonged to the same airline.<ref name="BBC persistence of conspiracy theories">{{cite web | url=https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-29083905 | title=Malaysia Airlines MH370: The persistence of conspiracy theories | work=BBC News | date=8 September 2014 | access-date=8 September 2014 | author=De Castella, Tom}}</ref>

When [[Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501]] crashed on 28 December 2014, various similarities with MH370 were noted, including that both airlines were Malaysian-owned,<ref name=HP-8501-01a>{{cite news|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2014/12/30/mh370-mh17-conspiracy-theory_n_6394792.html|title=AirAsia QZ8501 Conspiracy Theories Are Already Starting To Appear|date=30 December 2014|author=Barrell, Ryan|work=[[The Huffington Post UK]]|access-date=2 January 2015}}</ref> and that both planes lost contact with [[air traffic control]].<ref name=AU-8501-01a>{{cite news|url=http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/missing-airasia-flight-qz8501-and-mh370-share-similarities-according-to-aviation-experts/story-fnizu68q-1227168725873|title=Missing AirAsia flight QZ8501 and MH370 share similarities according to aviation experts|date=29 December 2014|work=[[News.com.au]]|access-date=2 January 2015|archive-date=1 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150101164840/http://www.news.com.au/travel/travel-updates/missing-airasia-flight-qz8501-and-mh370-share-similarities-according-to-aviation-experts/story-fnizu68q-1227168725873|url-status=dead}}</ref> There was also a reported conspiracy theory involving an alleged prediction on 15 December 2014 on Chinese news sites<ref name=wenxuecity>{{cite web|title=大陆论坛惊现预言帖 两周前警告远离亚航(图) (''Astonishing prediction revealed on Mainland Chinese forum that warned people to avoid AirAsia two weeks prior'')|url=http://www.wenxuecity.com/news/2014/12/28/3904836.html|website=文学城新闻频道 ([[Wenxuecity]] News Channel)|access-date=30 January 2015|date=28 December 2014|quote=根据微博爆料，网名〝老百姓有自己的乐〞的网友于本月15日晚上8点15分在天涯社会发帖，帖子题目为《马航被搞垮后，黑手又伸向了亚航》 ... (''According to news from [[Sina Weibo|Weibo]], a netizen named 'the common people have their own pleasures' published a post on [[Tianya Club]] at 8.15pm on the 15th of that month [December], entitled 'After Malaysia Airlines has been ruined, the black hand reaches for AirAsia'...'')}}</ref><ref name=xinhuanet>{{cite web|title="神帖"言中亚航失联 专家表示纯属偶然 (''"Legendary" post correctly predicted AirAsia loss of contact: purely coincidental, say experts'')|url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2015-01/01/c_127351593.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150131171451/http://news.xinhuanet.com/world/2015-01/01/c_127351593.htm|url-status=dead|archive-date=31 January 2015|website=[[Xinhuanet]]|access-date=30 January 2015|date=1 January 2015|quote=发帖者"老百姓有自己的乐"劝所有乘客"远离亚航"。 (''The poster 'the common people have their own pleasures' advised all passengers to 'avoid AirAsia'.'')}}</ref><ref name=nanyang>{{cite web|title=是预言还是窜改日期"马后炮"？ 中国网民曾告诫：远离亚航 (''A prophecy or a post after the fact with an altered date? Chinese netizen once warned: Avoid AirAsia'')|url=http://www.nanyang.com/node/671820?tid=1039|website=南洋网 (Nanyang Web)|publisher=南洋商报 (Nanyang Financial Times)|access-date=30 January 2015|date=30 December 2014|quote=中国媒体报道，网名"老百姓有自己的乐"的天涯社区网友，在留言中说："国际大黑手把马航MH370和马航MH17劫持和击落后，作为世界第六航空公司的马航基本垮了，处于要死不活的状态。(''The Chinese media reported that a member of [[Tianya Club]] named 'the common people have their own pleasures' left a message reading 'After the international black hand hijacked MH370 and shot down MH17, Malaysia Airlines, formerly the sixth-largest airline, has basically collapsed and is barely alive.'')|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150131172017/http://www.nanyang.com/node/671820?tid=1039|archive-date=31 January 2015|url-status=dead|df=dmy-all}}</ref><ref name=sina>{{cite web|title=亚航客机出事 网曝网友早有神级预测 (''AirAsia crash: online revelations that netizen made legendary prediction long before'')|url=http://news.sina.com.cn/c/2014-12-30/141531344770.shtml|website=[[Sina Corp|Sina.com]]|publisher=新浪新闻 (Sina News)|access-date=30 January 2015|date=30 December 2014|quote=一位网名为"老百姓有自己的乐"的网友在国内某著名论坛上发帖《马航被搞垮后，黑手又伸向了亚航》。(''A netizen named 'the common people have their own pleasures' made a post on a certain well-known domestic forum entitled 'After Malaysia Airlines has been ruined, the black hand reaches for AirAsia''.)}}</ref>. A post warned Chinese people to stay away from AirAsia as it would be attacked, as MH370 and MH17 allegedly had been (according to the user), as part of a conspiracy by a "black hand" or "despicable international bully" to harm Malaysian-owned airlines.<ref name=HP-8501-01a/> Other online posters suggested that the user was either a Chinese intelligence official or a hacker who had come across secret information.<ref name=HP-8501-01a/>

==Physically improbable theories==
The theory that MH370 may have been consumed by a [[black hole]] received considerable attention when [[Don Lemon]] asked, on CNN, whether it was "preposterous" that it could have happened.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://news.yahoo.com/cnn-black-hole-malaysia-flight-370-theories-144151381.html | title=CNN anchorman asks: Could a 'black hole' explain MH370 mystery? | work=[[Yahoo News]] | date=20 March 2014| access-date=26 March 2014| author=Stableford, Dylan}}</ref> Lemon was criticised for this by former [[United States Department of Transportation|U.S. Department of Transportation]] Inspector General [[Mary Schiavo]], who, while appearing on CNN, said that "...a [[Primordial black hole|small black hole]] would suck in our entire universe so we know it's not that."<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2014/03/20/Former-DoT-official-shuts-down-CNNs-conspiracy-theories-about-flight-370/9131395346019/ | title=Former DoT official shuts down CNN's conspiracy theories about flight 370| work=[[UPI]] | date=20 March 2014| access-date=26 March 2014| author=Graef, Aileen}}</ref> [[The Atlantic|TheWire.com]] (which "wasn't satisfied" with Schiavo's answer) obtained detailed reasons why a black hole couldn't swallow a plane from [[Columbia University]] astronomy professor [[David Helfand|David J. Helfand]] and [[Peter Michelson]], a professor of physics at [[Stanford University]].<ref name=TheWireDotCom01a>{{cite magazine|url=http://www.thewire.com/global/2014/03/we-asked-scientists-about-cnns-black-hole-based-malaysian-plane-theory/359382/|title=We Asked Astronomers About CNN's Black Hole-Based Malaysian Plane Theory|author=Abby Ohlheiser|magazine=[[The Atlantic|TheWire.com]]|date=20 March 2014|access-date=14 September 2014|archive-date=20 October 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141020170114/http://www.thewire.com/global/2014/03/we-asked-scientists-about-cnns-black-hole-based-malaysian-plane-theory/359382/|url-status=dead}}</ref> 

Another hypothesis is that a [[meteor]] might have struck the plane; however, the statistical probability for this is extremely low.<ref>{{cite news | url=http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/21/us/malaysia-airlines-flight-370-theories/ | title=From 'ghostly' to psychic, theories abound on Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 | work=CNN | date=21 March 2014| access-date=24 March 2014| author=Martinez, Michael}}</ref>

In March 2018, around the fourth anniversary of Flight 370's disappearance, an individual received strange voicemails and texts with coordinates of a location in Indonesia somewhat close to where Flight 370 vanished. The voicemails, coded in the [[NATO phonetic alphabet|NATO Phonetic Alphabet]], alluded to an [[alien abduction]].<ref name="breezejmu.org">{{Cite web|url=https://www.breezejmu.org/opinion/conspiracy-fact-or-fiction-twitter-voicemail-flight-370/article_0cde6018-24ba-11e9-b6ef-5b2267105665.html|title = Conspiracy Fact or Fiction &#124; Twitter voicemail & flight 370| date=3 February 2019 }}</ref> This generated significant media attention, as the man who received the texts and voicemails also claimed that someone had showed up and taken pictures of his house, although this was never conclusively verified.<ref name="breezejmu.org"/> The calls were placed using a [[VOIP]] service and were traced to two hotels in [[Port Blair]], though the identity of the caller remains uncertain.<ref name="breezejmu.org"/> Investigators dismissed the phone calls as most likely being a prank or hoax.<ref name="breezejmu.org"/>

== Claims of responsibility ==
On 9 March 2014, members of the Chinese news media received an open letter that claimed to be from the leader of the Chinese Martyrs Brigade, a previously unknown group. The letter claimed that the loss of Flight 370 was in retaliation for the Chinese government's response to the [[2014 Kunming attack|knife attacks at Kunming railway station on 1 March 2014]] and part of the wider separatist campaign against Chinese control over [[Xinjiang]] province. The letter also listed unspecified grievances against the Malaysian government. The letter's claim was dismissed as fraudulent based on its lack of detail regarding the fate of Flight 370 and the fact that the name "Chinese Martyrs Brigade" appeared inconsistent with [[East Turkestan independence movement|Uyghur separatist groups]] which describe themselves as "East Turkestan" and "Islamic" rather than "Chinese".<ref name=20140309boxuncmb>{{cite web|url=http://boxun.com/news/gb/intl/2014/03/201403091656.shtml |title="中国烈士旅领导人"发信称对马航客机失事负责 |date=9 March 2014 |access-date=6 May 2014}}</ref><ref name=20140310ibtimescmb>{{cite web|url=http://www.ibtimes.com/obscure-group-northwestern-china-chinese-martyrs-brigade-claims-responsibility-missing-malaysia |title=Obscure Group From Northwestern China, Chinese Martyrs' Brigade, Claims Responsibility For Missing Malaysia Airline Flight MH370; Authorities Skeptical of Claim |website=[[International Business Times]] |date=10 March 2014 |access-date=6 May 2014}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{col-begin}}
{{col-2}}
* [[9/11 conspiracy theories]]
* ''[[MH370: The Plane That Disappeared]]'': Netflix 2023 docuseries released on ninth anniversary of the disappearance
* [[List of accidents and incidents involving commercial aircraft]]
* [[List of aircraft accidents and incidents resulting in at least 50 fatalities]]
{{col-2}}
;Specific incidents
* [[SilkAir Flight 185]], another disputed crash involving [[pilot suicide]]
* [[Germanwings Flight 9525]]
* [[Japan Airlines Flight 350]]
* [[LAM Mozambique Airlines Flight 470]]
* [[Royal Air Maroc Flight 630]]
* [[2018 Horizon Air Q400 incident]]
{{col-end}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em|refs=
<ref name="BBC_2014-03-29">{{cite news
  | last1       = Moore
  | first1      = Andy
  | last2       = Donnison
  | first2      = Jon
  | title       = Flight MH370: Chinese and Australian ships draw blank
  | url         = https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-26797866
  | work   = BBC News
  | date        = 29 March 2014
  | access-date  = 9 May 2014
}}</ref>
<ref name="ABCus_2014-04-02">{{cite web
 |last1      = Thomas
 |first1     = Pierre
 |last2      = Margolin
 |first2     = Josh
 |title      = FBI Finishes Probe into Malaysia Airlines Captain's Flight Simulator
 |url        = http://abcnews.com/blogs/headlines/2014/04/no-clues-to-missing-malaysia-airlines-plane-in-captains-flight-simulator/
 |archive-url = https://archive.today/20141114084539/http://abcnews.com/blogs/headlines/2014/04/no-clues-to-missing-malaysia-airlines-plane-in-captains-flight-simulator/
 |url-status   = dead
 |archive-date = 14 November 2014
 |publisher  = [[ABC News (United States)|ABC News]]
 |date       = 2 April 2014
 |access-date = 7 May 2014
}}</ref>}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book|last1=Cawthorne|first1=Nigel|title=Flight MH370 – The Mystery|date=2014|publisher=John Blake Publishing|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=A_iVAwAAQBAJ&q=flight+mh370+the+mystery|isbn=978-1784181130|author-link1=Nigel Cawthorne}}
*{{cite book |last1=de Changy |first1=Florence |title=The Disappearing Act: The Impossible Case of MH370 |date=2021 |publisher=HarperCollins |location=London |isbn=9780008381530}}
* {{Skeptoid | id=4595 | number=595 | title= Chasing Malaysian Airlines MH370| date= October 31, 2017| quote= | access-date=}}

{{Malaysia Airlines}}
{{Conspiracy theories}}

[[Category:2014 controversies]]
[[Category:Malaysia Airlines Flight 370|disappearance theories]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theories involving aviation incidents]]
[[Category:Pseudohistory]]
[[Category:Conspiracy theories in Malaysia]]

[[De:Malaysia-Airlines-Flug 370#Theorien]]