The MH370 flight mystery lingers

Dear Sir,

The greatest aviation mystery continues to baffle the world, one year on.  Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 vanished a year ago, without any trace. The interim 584-page report issued by the Malaysia ministry of transportation offers no explanation on the fate of this tragic flight.
MH370 left the Kuala Lumpur International Airport at  12.41am on March 8 with 227 passengers and an all-Malaysian crew of 12. The plane was supposed to land in Beijing at 6.30am the same day but it never showed.
It is known that some Boeing 777 aircraft have suffered from potential weakness in the fuselage section. This was identified by the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) four months before the disappearance of MH370 which  was a Boeing 777. An FAA directive had warned of a potential weak spot which could lead to the “loss of structural integrity of the aircraft”. This could lead to a situation where the fuselage was affected, leading to rapid decompression.
An inspection on a particular 777 revealed a 16-inch crack under the crown skin of the fuselage. The plane was 14 years old with approximately 14,000 total flight cycles. On 42 other 777’s that were between six and 16 years old also, local corrosion was found.
It is possible that a slow decompression from a small hole could have gradually impaired and confused the pilots before cabin pressure warnings were sounded. This scenario explains why another pilot some 30 minutes ahead of MH370 heard mumbling and static sound from the MH370 pilots when he tried to contact them.
The interim report rules out a possible battery fire. But lithium-ion batteries have caused 140 mid-air incidents in the last 20 years. One cargo plane crashed in 2010 after attempting an emergency landing. The safety report said the battery caught fire and filled the flight deck with smoke.
A self-extinguishing fire probably could have overcome the crew and passengers of MH370, which allowed the plane to fly on auto pilot for five hours. A self-sustaining fire would have broken up the aircraft.
These are all speculations, however. The truth will emerge only when MH370 is found. Let there be no doubt, this plane will be found. If not today, tomorrow.

Farouk Araie, [email protected]

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