What it come down to is the cost of maintaining a jet fighter fleet. Even if New Zealand bought used F-16 for a low price, the cost in maintaining that fleet would be a large undertaking for the small population that lives here. When you have 4.5 Million people just over half of that population is working and contributing as the rest is either students, retired, minimum wages earners, or below the poverty line or unemployable. So we are talking about roughly 3 million people that are currently paying for defence forces.

 

I agree NZ probably doesn't need a full fighter squadron, as it would be too costly to maintain. If NZ ever came under attack, they would get all the support it needed from the US, UK, and possibly other countries. I do believe though most countries should have 1 or 2 fighter type aircraft to respond to situations just like this to defend against. I'm still questioning why Malaysia who does have the capability to respond sat on their rear ends, while a unidentified aircraft, with unknown intentions that they were tracking penetrated their airspace, without sending even one of it's fighters to check out. Had they done this, it's likely we wouldn't be in this situation today over a week later.

I worked out why the airliner flew west south west.

 

It was to avoid flying over land of Thailand.

 

I suspect this hijacking/theft of a 777 was extremely well planned.

 

I believe that calculations would have been made to ensure the pirates/terrorists had enough fuel to go where they needed to go.

 

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2014/03/17/lawmaker-missing-airliner-may-have-landed-in-southeast-asia-for-use-as-weapon/

 

 

Malaysia doesn't have a cheap military. Well compared to NZ anyway....

 

They have Sukhois, MiG29s, F/A-18s.....

 

And US radar had problems picking up the hijacked A/C on 911 too..... Didn't they?

 

Probably asleep.. As for the hijacking it's possible, but down here in Malaysia it's all chaos, can't get any proper updates, and the ruling party politicising this and pointing the fingers at the Captain for being an opposition supporter. 

With reference to latest news, the airplane allegedly was seen by several inhabitants of the Maldives, flying "unusually" low. It was seen on March 8 at around 06:15 a.m. local time. I checked the time of sunrise for the Maldives on that day, which was 06:14 a.m.. So this report might be true, especially when we consider that the airplane was still flying by that time with reference to news.

 

Meanwhile the theory by Keith Ledgerwood http://mh370shadow.com/post/79838944823/did-malaysian-airlines-370-disappear-using-sia68-sq68 has been contradicted http://www.businessinsider.com/pilots-react-to-the-most-elaborate-malaysia-370-weve-heard-yet-2014-3

 

I personally have a very, very bad feeling. If I consider all informations we got so far, I think it was a pilot suicide: he likely killed the first officer first, made sure that the airplane will be very hard to track, killed all passengers and the cabin crew by hypoxia (explains the climb to FL 450) and then flew above the indian ocean until the airplane ran out of fuel.

 

I can't imagine it was a hijacking due to a certain cargo. Because the airplane needs to land at a suitable airport and that unnoticed. You need a certain infrastructure for that, and some people behind it. So the only thing that comes to my mind is suicide. Everything else just makes no sense to me.

So far all we know is that shortly after hand-off the plane's communication ceased and the plane changed direction and likely crashed into the Indian Ocean several hours later. Assuming nothing nefarious had occurred, then it's very possible that the pilots were responding to an emergency which knocked out the communications and may have eventually incapacitated them.

deleted.

 

 

So far all we know is that shortly after hand-off the plane's communication ceased and the plane changed direction

 

Meanwhile, former FAA spokesman Scott Brenner said Tuesday that Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 was already 12 minutes into its diverted course when the plane's co-pilot calmly told air traffic controllers that things were "all right."

 

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2014/03/19/search-for-missing-malaysian-jet-focuses-on-southern-indian-ocean/

 

 

...(explains the climb to FL 450)...

 

What is source for this info?  I doubt 777 can reach that altitude full of fuel and payload.

 

 

I doubt 777 can reach that altitude full of fuel and payload

Supporting your statement is an interesting post #6055 on page 303 of the MH370 topic in PPRuNe. FL443 was the absolute maximum.

You think anyone has looked as his saved flight plans on his PMDG 777???

About the most straightforward (and rationale) explanation for this incident I have seen: http://www.wired.com/autopia/2014/03/mh370-electrical-fire/

 

Written by a pilot.

 

JKH

About the most straightforward (and rationale) explanation for this incident I have seen: http://www.wired.com/autopia/2014/03/mh370-electrical-fire/

 

Written by a pilot.

 

JKH

 

This theory has been debunked countless times already.

This theory has been debunked countless times already.

Sure, and the debunkers have been debunked countless times already as well.

 

As far as I can ascertain there is only one indisputable fact: no one alive knows where the aircraft is...

Sure, and the debunkers have been debunked countless times already as well.

 

As far as I can ascertain there is only one indisputable fact: no one alive knows where the aircraft is...

 

Exactly, the only indisputable fact is that the plane is missing.

 

 

As far as I can ascertain there is only one indisputable fact: no one alive knows where the aircraft is.

 

Actually, I'm not sure we can say that with complete certainty yet.

 

As far as I can tell, there are only two facts we know at this time.  An aircraft "officially" went missing (otherwise why are we having this circus), and some wreckage has been found. 

 

I could add that we know the pilot was a flight sim enthusiast, but that doesn't have any bearing on the case.

 

Hook

Okay, it appears that there are now at least four indisputable facts:

1. an aircraft is missing
2. something that might be wreckage has appeared in a satellite image
3. admission a short while ago that there was a "small" shipment of lithium-ion batteries in the cargo hold
4. the pilot was a flight simmer (irrelevant data point, but true nonetheless)