ASN Aircraft accident Boeing 777-2H6ER 9M-MRO Indian Ocean
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Status:Accident investigation report completed and information captured
Date:Saturday 8 March 2014
Time:08:11
Type:Silhouette image of generic B772 model; specific model in this crash may look slightly different
Boeing 777-2H6ER
Operator:Malaysia Airlines
Registration: 9M-MRO
MSN: 28420/404
First flight: 2002-05-14 (11 years 10 months)
Total airframe hrs:53471
Cycles:7526
Engines: 2 Rolls-Royce Trent 892B
Crew:Fatalities: 12 / Occupants: 12
Passengers:Fatalities: 227 / Occupants: 227
Total:Fatalities: 239 / Occupants: 239
Aircraft damage: Destroyed
Aircraft fate: Written off (damaged beyond repair)
Location:within Indian Ocean (   Indian Ocean)
Phase: En route (ENR)
Nature:International Scheduled Passenger
Departure airport:Kuala Lumpur International Airport (KUL/WMKK), Malaysia
Destination airport:Beijing-Capital International Airport (PEK/ZBAA), China
Flightnumber:MH370
Narrative:
Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia to Beijing, China was reported missing on March 8, 2014. There were 227 passengers and 12 crew members on board.
The Boeing 777-2H6ER took off from Kuala Lumpur International Airport's runway 32R at 00:41. At 00:42 the flight was cleared to climb to FL180 and was issued a direct track by Lumpur Approach to the IGARI waypoint. MH370 was then transferred to Lumpur Radar and was cleared to climb to FL250. At 00:50 the flight was further cleared to the planned cruising altitude of FL350. MH370 reported maintaining FL350 at 01:07. Last radio contact was at 01:19 when the Kuala Lumpur Radar controller instructed the flight to contact the radio frequency of Ho Chi Minh Air Traffic Control Centre, Vietnam: "Malaysian Three Seven Zero contact Ho Chi Minh 120 decimal 9 Good Night". One of the flight crew members replied: "Good night, Malaysian Three Seven Zero."
At 01:21 MH370 was observed on the radar screen of the Kuala Lumpur Radar controller as it passed over waypoint IGARI. Nine seconds later the radar label for MH370 disappeared from the radar screen. The transponder was switched off.
At 01:38 Ho Chi Minh ATCC contacted Kuala Lumpur ATCC on the whereabouts of MH370. Kuala Lumpur ATCC contacted the airline's operations centre, Singapore ACC, Hong Kong ACC, and Phnom Penh ACC, failing to establish the location of MH370.
Meanwhile, the airplane flew in a westerly direction back over peninsular Malaysia before turning northwest. Primary radar data showed that the aircraft tracked along the Malacca Strait. During this time the aircraft passed close to waypoints VAMPI, MEKAR, NILAM and possibly IGOGU along a section of airway N571. The final primary radar fix occurred at 02:22.
From then on seven handshakes between the aircraft's SATCOM system and the Inmarsat ground station were recorded. Last satellite data was recorded at 08:11 Malaysian time.

Initially search efforts focused on the South China Sea area. On 24 March 2014 further analysis of the Inmarsat satellite data indicated that MH370 flew south and ended its flight in the southern part of the Indian Ocean.
A surface search was conducted of probable impact areas along an arc, identified by calculations based on Inmarsat data. The search was carried out from 18 March - 28 April 2014. This search effort was undertaken by an international fleet of aircraft and ships with the search areas over this time progressing generally from an initial southwest location along the arc in a north-easterly direction. No debris associated with MH370 was identified either from the surface search, acoustic search or from the ocean floor search in the vicinity of acoustic detections, which were initially believed to have been from the pingers on the flight recorders. The ocean floor search was completed on 28 May 2014.
On June 26 the ATSB published a new search area based on refinements to the analysis of both the flight and satellite data. The priority area of approximately 60,000 km2 extends along the arc for 650 km in a northeast direction from Broken Ridge, an underwater ridge. The width of the priority search area is 93 km.

On July 29, 2015 a flapperon washed ashore on the French island of Réunion in the Indian Ocean. On August 5 it was established to have been from MH370.

Probable Cause:

The Team is unable to determine the real cause for the disappearance of MH370.

Accident investigation:

cover
Investigating agency: MH370 Team
Status: Investigation completed
Duration: 4 years and 4 months
Accident number: final report
Download report: Final report

Sources:
» mh370search.com
» DCA Malaysia
» ATC Transcript
» Malaysia Airlines


Follow-up / safety actions

MH370 issued 19 Safety Recommendations
NTSB issued 8 Safety Recommendations

Show all...

Photos

photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
photo of Boeing-777-2H6ER-9M-MRO
accident date: 08-03-2014
type: Boeing 777-2H6ER
registration: 9M-MRO
 

Video, social media

Aircraft history
date registration operator remarks
14 MAY 2002 9M-MRO Boeing first flight
31 MAY 2002 9M-MRO Malaysia Airlines delivered
09 AUG 2012 9M-MRO Malaysia Airlines contaced the tail of a China Eastern Airlines A340 (B-6050) at Shanghai-Pudong International Airport, China. Wing tip of B777 severed.

Map
This map shows the airport of departure and the intended destination of the flight. The line between the airports does not display the exact flight path.
Distance from Kuala Lumpur International Airport to Beijing-Capital International Airport as the crow flies is 4392 km (2745 miles).
Accident location: Global; accuracy within tens or hundreds of kilometers.

This information is not presented as the Flight Safety Foundation or the Aviation Safety Network’s opinion as to the cause of the accident. It is preliminary and is based on the facts as they are known at this time.
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