The story surrounding missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 has seen numerous updates since the flight disappeared in March 2014, but now, there’s a new theory on what happened. CNN reports how the Australian Transport Safety Bureau believes the flight was spinning out of control with no one at the helm before its last satellite communication. The newest analysis from the group paints the clearest picture anyone has had regarding the flight, which has seen many theories.
The Australian bureau believes the plane was descending up to 25,000 feet per minute, which the organization believes lines up with the evidence they have seen:
“Additional analysis (of) the final satellite communications to and from the aircraft is consistent with the aircraft being in a high and increasing rate of descent at that time. Additionally, the wing flap debris analysis reduced the likelihood of end-of-flight scenarios involving flap deployment.”
The report does debunk one of the most widely held theories of the flight, which is that the pilot was still at the helm when the flight went down. AirlineRatings.com aviation expert Geoffrey Thomas told CNN that some of the debris recovered backs up the Australian bureau’s theory:
“The really important news in this report is that the flap found in Tanzania was stowed. Therefore there was no way this airplane was being flown by anyone. It was out of control, ran out of fuel and spiraled into the sea at high speed.”
This report arrives just as officials and experts from Malaysia, China, Australia, the U.S., and the U.K. are meeting to discuss the bureau’s latest findings and how to continue the search for the lost flight.
(Via CNN)