Thoughts and theories
On Sunday, it will be a year since flight Mh370 disappeared. In the vacuum of information left behind, a slew of books have appeared, attempting to tackle the mystery.
IN the first few hours after news of the disappearance of flight MH370 was released in March, there was hope. But as the hours added up, that hope faded and confusion arose. And, inevitably, as days flowed into weeks and then months, speculation became rampant. Everyone from experts to observers seemed to have ideas about what could have happened, ranging from technical failures to government conspiracies and even more sinister events.
From online speculation, it’s a short, quick step to books nowadays. Various authors penned their thoughts on what they believed happened during that flight, with some more credible than others. While some titles do come across as a quick cash grab, others may yet offer insight into one of the most mysterious aviation disasters of our time.
Here are some of the titles we’ve discovered:
Goodnight Malaysian 370: The Truth Behind The Loss Of Flight 370 by Geoff Taylor and Ewan Wilson: This book offers a detailed analysis of flight MH370, the route it took, as well as who the authors believe was in charge of the aircraft when it disappeared. Goodnight Malaysian 370 purports to investigate each piece of evidence and eliminate every possible scenario, until readers are left with “one shocking and unbelievable conclusion” about what happened. The book’s title comes from what are believed to be the last words uttered by the flight’s captain, Zaharie Shah, before the plane’s communications systems were allegedly switched off.
The book also contains interviews with Zaharie’s family. And it looks at the tragedy of MH17, the airplane that was downed over the Ukraine in July last year, and goes on to examine the implications of the events on future air travel, and whether Malaysia Airlines can survive these losses.
Geoff Taylor is the deputy editor of the Waikato Times, one of New Zealand’s leading daily papers, while Ewan Wilson is a commercial pilot and the former chief executive of Kiwi International Airlines and Norfolk Air. Wilson also has qualifications as a trans- port safety investigator.
MH370: By Accident Or Design by Peter Lee: In this relatively short e-book (it has fewer than 100 pages), available only on Kindle, British military controller Peter Lee analyses the exact sequence of events that took place during the disappearance. He explains how aircraft systems work, and elaborates on the crucial significance of where the aircraft was when it vanished from radar screens. He believes that the aircraft’s disappearance was deliberately perpetrated.
Lee states he has been involved in aircraft accident and investigation procedures as part of his job, and was the principal expert witness at the board of inquiry after a Royal Navy Sea Harrier aircraft was lost in the North Irish Sea some years ago.
Flight MH370: The Mystery by Nigel Cawthorne: This book outlines many theories about what could have happened aboard the flight, ranging from the serious to the outlandish (alien abductions, for example, or that the airplane was redirected by spies to a secret landing field). Also included is information about various other air crashes in history. Some theories are more believable than others, of course, so take them with a grain of salt and draw your own conclusions.
Nigel Cawthorne is a journalist and author of over 160 books, from serious political works such as The Iron Cage to lightweight romps such as Sex Lives Of The Popes.
Malaysia Flight MH370 – Lost In The Dark: In Defense Of The Pilots: An Engineer’s Perspective by John P. Choisser: This book (which suffers from an over-abundance of titles!) takes a technical look at the disappearance of MH370. Choisser’s book contains much technical information about planes, detailing the intricacies of safety systems and how they all work in relation to each other. The author divides MH370’s flight route into four distinct segments, and explains what they all could mean, before concluding with possible scenarios to explain its disappearance.
Choisser is an US Air Force veteran, who has been an officer in the Data Processing Branch of the Intelligence and Electronic Warfare Directorate of Rome Air Development Center, New York. He was involved with Teledyne Ryan, helping with the design of the cockpit data recorder for the Boeing 747.
Someone Is Hiding Something: What Happened To Malaysia Airlines Flight 370? by Richard Belzer, George Noory & David Wayne: A highly unusual trifecta of personalities came together to pen this book, which derives its title from a quote by former Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad. Belzer is a comedian and actor, best known for his role as John Munch on police dramas such as Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. Noory is the host of the American radio show Coast To Coast AM, which covers unexplained phenomena, and is the most listened to overnight programme in North America. Wayne, on the other hand, has been an investigative journalist for more than 25 years and special- ises in the microanalysis of media events.
In Someone Is Hiding Something, the three authors scrutinize the theories that the media and politicians claim are the “most likely” reasons the plane crashed, arguing that since there has still been no sign of the plane after so long, it is time to think out of the box.
The book claims there was an abundance of misreporting and inadequate explanations during the media coverage of the tragedy, and examines questions they state were never properly answered, such as why no one on the plane tried to use their mobile phones. It also presents various possibilities about the plane’s disappearance, and examines their probability.
Into Oblivion: Understanding MH370 by Capt Samir (Sam) Kohli: “This book does not tell you what happened to MH370,” Into Oblivion’s synopsis proclaims at the outset. “If you seek a book that explains what happened to the flight, then this is not the book for you. If you’re looking to read an emotional account of this tragedy, then this book is not for you. I have no interviews with any of the victims’ family members, because I believe that people need to be allowed to grieve in private.”
What the book does, however, is present a comprehensive scientific evaluation of each and every theory regarding the disappearance of the flight. The author claims he is out to state the facts without any speculation, and explain how they should be interpreted based on available scientific and historical data.
Captain Sam is a pilot, air accident investigator, and ICAO (International Civil Aviation Organisation) qualified and certified safety management systems trainer. His aviation career has spanned over 30 years. He was awarded the Cecil A. Brownlow Publication Award in 2014 for his first published book Waiting ... To Happen!, which is awarded by the Flight Safety Foundation for significant contributions by journalists to aviation safety awareness.
Malaysia Airlines Flight 370: Why It Disappeared – And Why It’s Only A Matter Of Time Before This Happens Again by David Soucie: This book investigates the events that led to MH370’s disappearance, as well as why they could happen again. Author Soucie exposes the flaws in the aviation industry as he sees them, shares what steps need to be taken to ensure planes do not disappear again, and utilises a Baynesian analysis model to reveal what most likely aboard the plane caused its downfall.
Soucie is CNN’s safety analyst and was a frequent guest during its coverage of the event. He has 30 years of experience working with the US Federal Aviation Administration as a safety inspector and accident investigator, and has worked in the cockpit, on the hangar floor, and within the aviation boardroom.
There are also several works of fiction available on the MH370 tragedy: a search on Amazon. com reveals, among others, John F. Brinster’s The Landing At Aipotu: A Fantasy Account Of Flight Mh370, Richard Hall’s I Survived Flight MH370, and By The Sound Of Silence: A Novel On The Malaysian Flight 370 by Colin and Charlie Cheng. These also vary in quality, with some coming across as rather exploitative. So read with caution if you choose to.