Despite protestations to the contrary, what remains of Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 will likely never be found. Thats the hard truth that the search crews and the families and friends of the victims have yet to fully embrace, but were getting there and fast.

After nearly three decades of journalism, Ive learned to follow my gut instinct. And theres something thats just off about this whole case. Its not simply a matter of following search arcs. Im just not 100 percent convinced engine ping satellite acquisition signals notwithstanding that this Malaysia Airlines Boeing Boeing 777-200 aircraft ultimately ended up along the primary 7th search arc in the southern Indian Ocean.

As Emirates Airline CEO Sir Tim Clark told Der Spiegel late last year, and as I noted in a previous Forbes column, We have not seen a single thing that suggests categorically that this aircraft is where they say it is, apart from this so-called electronic satellite handshake which I question as well. But nearly a year after disappearing, while carrying 239 passengers and crew en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, nor do I believe that the aircraft was hijacked and then secreted away for some sort of nefarious later use.

The flight deck of the missing Malaysian 777-200 as photographed in 2004. Photo Credit: Wikipedia

Although the Australians have run a very professional search operation, their continual optimism about finding the wreckage from the Malaysian 777 at this late date is arguably misplaced. Or at least such optimism should be frequently leavened with the concession that despite their methodical search strategies,

In truth, finding the remains of MH370 is hardly just a matter of covering the remaining 60,000 square km of search area in the manner that one might look for a lost earring in the carpet of a living room floor. There are just too many variables that were used to track the aircrafts putative flight path south into the Indian Ocean not to wonder whether theres simply something very fundamental missing from the search calculus.

As for the Malaysians?

The manner in which the Malaysian government has communicated the facts over the past year has rightly or wrongly created the impression that something is being covered up. This makes fertile ground for conspiracy theorists. But it also seems like more than just a case study in bad crisis management public relations.

As Sir Clark told Der Spiegel last October, We need to know who was on the plane in detail and what was in the hold of the aircraft.

As for the media?

Original post:

Why MH370 Will Likely Remain Lost