Whoever took MH370 did so in a lightning coup de main that showed decisiveness and a sophisticated knowledge of airspace, air traffic control procedure, and avionics. Formulating the plan would have required substantial planning. In today's episode, we explore how the plane's captain, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, might have laid the groundwork for such an operation. (In a future episode we'll look at how hijackers outside the cockpit might have laid their plans.) I'm extremely fortunate to be joined by the experienced 777 captain and prolific YouTuber Ron Rogers, who makes videos about a wide range of aviation topics, including classic aircraft and his own contemporary flying adventure.
I think that this week’s episode is one of the most important episodes that I’ve done, because thanks to his vast expertise regarding the 777 Ron is able to make very clear a point that many people have still failed to grasp: that the reboot of the SDU is deeply problematic for the pilot-suicide theory. Simply put, Zaharie would not have had the depth of technical knowledge necessary to reboot the SDU; it would have been deeply contrary to his training to do so; and he would not have derived any discernible benefit from it.
I also explore why Zaharie might have made a U-turn at IGARI rather than simply making the plane disappear in the Pacific Ocean, or, if he for some reason wanted to vanish specifically to vanish in the southern Indian Ocean, why he didn’t wait until he was assigned to a west-bound flight to the Middle East or Europe, when it would have been a simple enough matter to simply go dark and slip away over the vastness of the sea without have to overfly any air force bases.
In short, when we look at the pilot-suicide scenario from the perspective of a senior airline captain laying the ground work for his scheme, the events of March 8 make very little sense, either with regards to what Zaharie’s possible goals or what he would have been able to carry out.