MH370 ‘deliberately crashed’

Expert believes Malaysian flight flown until the end by rogue pilot

ONE of the world’s leading air crash investigators believes flight MH370 was deliberately crashed into the sea by a rogue pilot in a possible murder-suicide bid.

Larry Vance said erosion on the edges of recovered wing parts suggested the plane was lowered to its doom in a controlled fashion.

The erosion was caused by a part of the plane’s wing – called a flaperon – being exposed to the elements when it was extended.

The flaperon could only be extended by a pilot in full control of his plane, Vance said.

Flight MH370 disappeared on March 8 2014 with 239 passengers and crew on board.

The plane had been heading to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur when it vanished from radar.

For the past two years investigators have combed the seabed using underwater drones but are yet to establish what caused the disaster.

Vance, who led the investigation into the downing of Swissair Flight 111 in 1998, told Channel Nine’s 60 Minutes: “Somebody was flying the aeroplane at the end of its flight. There is no other theory that fits.”

Previous theories suggested it crashed after malfunctioning or was shot down.

But there is growing evidence, investigators say, that points to a rogue pilot scenario in which Captain Zaharie Shah deliberately flew the plane off-radar before plunging it into the ocean.

Vance further said the failure to find floating debris and lifejackets would fit the theory of a slow, controlled landing.

Australian Transport Safety Bureau crash investigator Peter Foley agreed the crash could have been the work of a rogue pilot.

He said analysis from French authorities showed it was possible the plane was in a deployed state.

The flaperon is in the hands of the French, and Malaysian investigators are frustrated after waiting for more than a year to examine it.

Vance said planes which crashed into the ocean while out of control usually exploded on impact, creating millions of pieces of debris.

But in MH370’s case, only a handful of wing segments have been recovered.

Meanwhile, a large wing part believed to be from the missing plane was taken to Canberra for analysis after it was found by residents on Pemba Island off the coast of Tanzania in June. – The Telegraph