KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia [Peter Paul Media] — An interim report into the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 released Sunday revealed that a battery which powered the plane’s emergency locator transmitter (ELT) had expired for more than a year before the plane disappeared, a previously undisclosed revelation caused by a faulty computer system, the report said.
Despite the expired ELT, “The total accidents in which ELTs were carried, only 22.5% of the ELTs operated effectively,” Malaysia’s Ministry of Transportation said.
The 584-page report, reviewed by Peter Paul Media, offered pages upon pages of data which showed a mostly normal flight prior to the disappearance exactly one year ago, setting off the biggest mystery in aviation history.
The Boeing 777-200ER disappeared from radar screens at abruptly 1:20 AM on March 8 between Malaysia and China but Malaysia’s search and rescue teams weren’t activated until after 6 AM, hours after the plane disappeared, the report said.
It begins with a detailed account which began when MH370’s Captain in Command arrived at the airport about 25 minutes prior to the First Officer on March 7. Surveillance footage showed “no significant behavioral changes” in the flight or cabin crew members of MH370 from the time they arrived at the airport until boarding a short time later, the report states.
Family members of the missing passengers and crew marked the anniversary Sunday with a prayer service, vowing to never give up searching for their missing loved ones.
Malaysian authorities in January declared the plane lost with all 239 people on board presumed dead, angering loved ones who still believe search officials were not being truthful. Some have even started their own independent investigations into flight 370.
No traces of the plane or its passengers and crew have ever been found even after a year of exhaustive searches involving multiple countries and agencies.
Peter Paul Media 