Maldives residents saw 'low-flying jumbo jet' on March 8: report

[brooklynite]

Source: Straits-Times (Singapore)

PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Residents of Kuda Huvadhoo in Dhaal Atoll in the Maldives reportedly saw a "low-flying jumbo jet" flying over houses early in the morning of March 8, the same day Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 went missing.

In a report by Maldivian daily Haveeru, residents described the aircraft which flew over Kuda Huvadhoo at around 6:15am as being white, with red stripes across it.

This colour scheme is very similar to the livery used by Malaysia Airlines on its aircraft - including the Boeing 777 used for MH370.

Eyewitnesses who saw the aircraft agreed that it was travelling in a north to south-east heading towards Addu, the southern tip of the Maldives, and all commented on the very loud noise the aircraft made when flying over the island.

Read more: http://www.straitstimes.com/breaking-news/se-asia/story/maldives-residents-saw-low-flying-jumbo-jet-march-8-report-20140319

---

At this point, I'll take a cautious approach to any new sightings that didn't get reported for 11+ days.

[jwirr]

1. Why does it take them 10 days to tell us this?

[hedgehog]

3. Maybe because we're talking about a remote, tiny island in the Indian Ocean west of India?

It's not the first place I'd go looking for an airliner flying from Indonesia to China. Also, who were they supposed to tell, and ow?

[jwirr]

4. Okay.

[brooklynite]

7. A tiny island with a TV station, a newspaper and telephone service...

The Haveeru paper has been reporting the disappearance since it started.

http://www.haveeru.com.mv/search/all/latest/2

[dem in texas]

28. This was reported shortly after the plane went missing

A man was out in his yard and saw the plane, I read this days ago. Also, someone on an oil platform saw it too. Both instances were reported days ago.

[Warpy]

76. I read this several days ago

Being sighted in the Maldives as a low flying jet could be reconciled with the data from the engines, we've already been told the plane flew at its upper limit for a period of time and at low level for a period of time. If those times were the same then we know the most likely route and that would be helpful.

It would mean he was trying to reach Somalia. Since that's so far outside the range, he ran out of gas and crashed in the ocean.

[Sunlei]

2. don't understand why none of the passengers used their cell phone at that moment.

Not even a single text. Do the pilots have control of cabin pressure? Those poor people.

[brooklynite]

8. ...at that moment?

First, cell phones don't work over water.

Second, they don't work over undeveloped land.

Third, they don't work above about 13,000 feet.

(and yes, the pilot can depressurize the cabin.)

[Sunlei]

11. "at that moment" when the plane was reported flying very low over neighborhoods

I sure would have picked up my cell and tried to text someone, "hey this plane is a couple thousand feet over houses!" Passengers looking out windows would have seen the lights.

Sad all around, the plane could have been depressurized when it was at 85,000 feet, the masks only last couple mins. Then the people die. That's why I asked if pilots have direct control of cabin pressure.

[Peace Patriot]

40. Top height of the plane was 45,000 feet, not 85,000.

It was 45,000 or thereabouts. The plane then descended to 23,000 feet or so, and went up again to 42,000 feet or thereabouts, and then descended again. It was never at 85,000 feet. (Anyone who knows the exact figures, please correct mine, if necessary.)

It is difficult to explain this behavior of the plane (if these stats have held up--information is rather rocky) except as a deliberate attempt by whoever was flying the plane to kill the passengers, although it could have had something to do with avoiding detection. But there are still so many unknowns that all is speculation.

Did you ever see that great old movie "Lost Horizon," directed by Frank Capra (1937), from the book of the same name, by James HIlton (1933)? I can't help but think of that movie (which I think is better than the book) during this agonizing search for the missing Malaysian plane. The "Lost Horizon" story has some haunting similarities to this real world story. Like the wispy hope for peace in the post-WW I world, expressed by Hilton, and, a bit later, by Capra--in "Lost Horizon"--wispy but extremely touching--I hope against hope that there will be a good outcome, or at least not a tragic one for the Malaysian plane and its passengers. It's not at all likely, even if some or all of the people are still alive, but still we can hope and pray that, by some miracle, it is not what it looks like--a hijacking gone wrong and the plane and its people lost.

Basics on "Lost Horizon": http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Horizon. The wiki entry doesn't mention that a strong anti-war statement by the main character (British consul Conway) was edited out of many of the cuts of Capra's "Lost Horizon" as they were released in the pre-WW II period. Many people are unaware of just how anti-war this movie was, in the director's cut.

[riverwalker]

77. loved that book

I think Shangri-La was (very loosely) based on the mythical Shambala.
Conway spends the rest of his life trying to return to Shangri-La. His heart believed but his mind couldn't.

[catbyte]

12. But airphones do. I've used them crossing the Atlantic.

[brooklynite]

14. Airphones are satellite-based, and have largely been discontinued.

[LiberalElite]

41. Sounds to me like

the plane was below 13,000 feet when it went over the Maldives.

[passiveporcupine]

32. If decompression happened

Everyone on the plane might have been unconscious or dead by that point. The plane might have been flying on autopilot (which has been suggested by some pilots).

I wonder...would the plane have had enough fuel to make it to Somalia?

This will be a puzzle until the plane is found. If ever.

[Voice for Peace]

5. this seems believable to me all things considered

and is it possible the Maldives residents just aren't
well-connected to media?

[Javaman]

6. That's only a stones throw away from Deigo Garcia Military base...

One would think that they would have been able to track the airplane or pick up it's signature via radar.

Since it's located in the same Maldives chain of islands.

just saying...

[mainer]

10. Which was one of the original conspiracy theories

That the CIA hijacked the plane to fly it to Diego Garcia for some nefarious purpose. Certainly the Maldives is on the way. And that would explain why no radar reportedly picked it up down there -- because the CIA wouldn't let out that information.

[MADem]

56. DGAR is a joint facility, US/UK.

It's also loaded with 3rd country nationals who wouldn't necessarily keep their mouths shut. But here's the scant coverage that's being shopped about it:

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2014/03/island-of-diego-garcia-factors-into-mysterious-malaysia-flight-theories/

[treestar]

25. But the plot thickens

http://www.democraticunderground.com/?com=view_post&forum=1014&pid=758625


Perhaps they are able to evade radar?

[EX500rider]

29. No, the Maldives are almost 500 miles N of Diego...

...that'd be out of range of radar even if they had a AWACS up....."AWACS pulse-Doppler radar has a range of more than 250 mi for low-flying targets at its operating altitude, and the pulse "beyond the horizon" radar has a range of approximately 400 miles for aircraft flying at medium to high altitudes."

[Javaman]

31. ah okay, thanks for the insight and correction.

Cheers.

[TwilightGardener]

9. Is it "mall-dive"? or "mal-DEEV"?

Is it "enn-dive"? Or "on-DEEV"? This bothers me.

[Zorra]

17. deevs nt

[TwilightGardener]

18. Thanks. I was also considering "mahl-DEE-vehs", as if Spanish, but I'll take your

word for it.

[BrotherIvan]

33. The latter for both

[Baclava]

13. Headed to Africa?

[brooklynite]

16. Wouldn't make...way out of fuel range.

[happyslug]

19. Not if the pilot decided to use "Ground Effect" as in the Spruce Goose

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_effect_in_aircraft

Some actual Ground affect aircraft:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ground_effect_vehicle

The 2002 Boeing work on a place with this affect:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boeing_Pelican

And of course the "Spruce Goose":

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hughes_H-4_Hercules

If the pilot took the place down to 50-200 feet above sea level, Ground affect would have kicked in and extended his range, by another 1/3 or more.

The down side is this is a JET with a low wing, thus water splash can enter the engine and knock out the engine, forcing the plane to crash (Thus all purpose made ground affect aircraft have been high wing design to keep those engines away from the water as much as possible).

If he had Diego Garcia on his simulator, it could have been as a safety stop if his plans appeared to be failing.

I am NOT saying this is what happened, I need something called "Evidence" that this jet was operating extremely, almost sea level, height before I will say this is possible, but it may be possible under the right circumstances (But highly unlikely given the possibility to water entering the engines and causing them to quit and thus crashing the plane).

[pangaia]

34. Ground effect?

"..., Ground affect would have kicked in and extended his range, by another 1/3 or more. "

Uh uh-- ain't gonna happen.

[happyslug]

72. I do not think so either, but it is a possibility.

n/t

[pangaia]

74. It is not even remotely a possibility.

Really. it's not. Honestly, truly.
I am not a T7 driver but I do have a PPL and fly a Tri-Pacer on weekends when I can, and once in a while a friend's Bellanca Super Viking.. Oh, that is a sweet aircraft..

[magical thyme]

15. Diego Garcia and 5 other nearby runways were found on one of the pilot's simulators

per Kuala Lampur outlets.

[marions ghost]

20. OK this is at least "interesting"

...unless we are to think that the residents of the small Maldive island see big planes fly like this ordinarily.

They would seem to have no incentive to lie about such a sighting.

[LiberalElite]

37. If they do see big planes

fly low like this ordinarily I would expect they wouldn't bother to talk about it or broadcast it in the media.

[freshwest]

42. Used to see Flying Fortresses fly low over my place between Central TX and the Panhandle.

It was once a week, and we expected it. Just as we expected to hear and feel the percussion from the artillery range many miles away. The planes were so close we waved at the pilots as they flew overhead.

It's possible they've seen many miliatry planes from Deigo Garcia and didn't think it newsworthy but the markings and the sounds were strange.

I am just speculating. I would like to think they landed on one of the islands. I read today in a local paper some other speculations, but nothing new.

[BobR]

21. What's the motivation?

Ultimately, that's what I keep coming back to. There's all kinds of conspiracy theories, but you have to look at the pilot's long-term history. Why would he fly a planeload of people to some other country/airport? What would he hope to accomplish? How does that fit in with his previous life/work history?

I read this earlier today, and I gotta say - it makes a lot more sense: http://www.wired.com/autopia/2014/03/mh370-electrical-fire/

By the time the plane flies over the Maldives, everyone onboard is already dead of smoke inhalation, and the plane itself is just cruising on autopilot.

[marions ghost]

22. What did the Maldive people on the atoll see?

Was what they saw unusual?

If it was, why would they lie?

[magical thyme]

24. per the articles, it was very unusual

First, there is very little air traffic there. Second, it was flying very low. One woman described being able to see a lot of detail.

I don't think they'd have a reason to lie. A town official confirmed that several residents had reported the sighting.

[marions ghost]

27. That's what I thought too,

a very unusual occurrence.

[Agschmid]

48. Wouldn't that fire also disable the auto pilot?

[greyl]

52. That makes sense. nt

[epona]

23. Tensions escalating with Russia and US at same time that plane is missing?

Are you at all concerned about the tensions between US and Russia happening at the same time as the plane has gone missing? I had read that there were scientist on board that hold patents on the microprocessors that are in our weapons?

"On Saturday, Texas-based Freescale Semiconductor confirmed that 20 employees were passengers on Flight 370. Twelve are from Malaysia and eight from China, the company said." http://media.freescale.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=196520&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1907348&highlight=

http://www.cwcdefense.com/media-center/white-papers/embedded-high-assurance-computing-using-the-freescale-trust-architecture.html

http://www.freescale.com/webapp/sps/site/prod_summary.jsp?code=P4080

http://www.cnn.com/2014/03/08/world/asia/malaysia-airlines-plane-passengers/

[magical thyme]

26. I read a comment somewhere else stating they were patent holders, but the article said not true.

The names on the patent (application?) do not match the employees on the flight.

[EX500rider]

30. I'm back to Somali pirates trying (and failing) a new gig...

....if this report turns out to be true.

Somalia was almost in range, and parts have been in range on some of the possible range charts i have seen. Air piracy that ran short?

Depends on head/tail wind, alt/speed and weight and how much fuel she took off with.

[pangaia]

35. Hey, all..

This is starting to sound a little like the comments on Yahoo..


God, do I REALLY read anything on Yahoo?
Guess, the secret's out.

[likesmountains 52]

36. I heard that someone on the flight had a Cat Steven's CD!

[TorchTheWitch]

38. first, the Malaysia Airlines 777 doesn't have red stripes

It has a single stripe of red and blue, a roundish emblem on the tail that is half red and half blue, and the word "Malaysia" in blue above the duel colored stripe.

Sunrise in the Maldives on March 8 was 6:14 am just at the time this plane was reportedly seen. At that time the sun would just have been peaking over the horizon, and the sky would still have been relatively dark or at least so dark that the color red would have appeared to be mistaken as blue or perhaps purple.
http://timezoneguide.com/sunrise-sunsets-Maldives.html

Given how dark the sky would have been at that time, the fact that there is only one duel colored stripe across the plane that due to the rather dark conditions at the time would have likely appeared entirely blue whatever low flying plane was seen was not a Malaysian Airlines 777.

Couple this with the distance the plane supposedly traveled and its fuel munching low altitude for most of that time there's just no way that it could have been this plane as it couldn't have gotten that far and beyond since these people don't also report that it fell from the sky and crashed.

Further, if they claim they could see it so clearly that they could discern the outline of the doors they certainly could have seen it clearly enough to discern there was only one duel colored stripe that in the dark sky of dawn would have not even appeared to be red but blue. Also, had they been able to see it so closely as to be able to discern the outline of the doors they couldn't possibly have missed that giant blue word "Malaysia" above the single stripe.

I don't doubt they saw some sort of aircraft flying low over them at some time in the morning, but it could not have been this plane given their own description of it and how clearly they claimed to have seen it.

[LiberalElite]

59. It does have A

red stripe and a blue one below the red. Could the red have been more visible at dawn?

[TorchTheWitch]

66. it would most likely be the opposite

Though they claimed to have seen this plane at 6:15 am, and sunrise was at 6:14 am that day they sky would generally still be relatively dark. It certainly wouldn't have been daylight once the sun was all the way up. In that kind of lighting red colors appear either purple or even blue. Seeing a single stripe of duel colors of red and blue in that lighting would have appeared as a single BLUE stripe. Just in looking at some of the photos of the 777 from Malaysia Airlines in certain angles and even brighter lighting that stripe or sections of it appear blue or purple. Saying they saw the plane so close and so clearly that they could see the outline of the doors on they plane yet the color scheme and pattern is described as "red stripes" and missing that giant "malaysia" logo above the duel single stripe is pretty ludicrous.

[kristopher]

60. Interesting but it doesn't hold up

4 minutes past sunrise over the ocean is full daylight unless there are clouds on the horizon.

The aircraft was probably at an altitude of at least 500 ft, meaning that it would have been in full light before the official time of sunrise on that island.

The paint scheme on the aircraft does match the description of the islanders.

[TorchTheWitch]

65. no, the description doesn't match

There aren't "red stripes". There is one duel colored stripe of both read and blue. They claim that they could see the plane so clearly given how close it was that they could see the outline of the doors yet didn't get the color scheme or pattern correct and somehow missed ANY blue or that giant blue "Malaysia" printed above the single stripe.

And given what has already been claimed in how low the plane flew and for how long at that low altitude there's no way that it could possibly have had enough gas to pass over the islands and keep going without their also witnessing it crashing.

Or maybe like so many other claims about this plane it's just a bunch of hooey like some volunteer searcher pulling a body in a life vest out of the ocean and so many others.

Still, the biggest point that no one has bothered to ask questions about is why is it that the Malaysian air force in discovering an unidentified aircraft on their radar that wasn't supposed to be there yet supposedly did nothing at all when it's their JOB in such a situation to get the jets off the ground and go intercept the aircraft and find out what it is, whether or not it has an emergency, what that is and determine whether or not it needs to be shot down. It's absurd to believe that they DIDN'T do there job and intercept that aircraft and know exactly what happened to it which increasingly appears given their silence on this issue was that they did shoot it down and probably for a legitimate reason.

Just yesterday this article from a person in the know appeared that answered questions concerning the plane, and this question and answer speaks volumes...

http://news.yahoo.com/could-mah730-have-been--swapped--mid-air--haynes-manual-plane-expert-offers-his-theories-135928312.html
Q: Why did the Malaysian air force not scramble their fighters?

A: I actually trained the Malaysian air Force at Kuantan Air Base on the east coast of Malaysia, and they have two MIG-29 fighter aircraft sat on alert 24/7, ready to scramble should an unknown aircraft enter their airspace...why were they not scrambled?

Most countries in this region spend billions of dollars on defense – in particular, air defense – protecting their international airspace and waters.

The Indian Air Force have stated they only turn on their radars on a "need-to" basis – I think that's very unbelievable. I find it almost impossible that a Boeing 777 could be flying over land – whether that's Vietnam, Malaysia, India or further north without anyone seeing it.

And there you have it from someone that trained the Malaysian air force... there is NO WAY that they did NOT scramble jets and intercept that plane. No way at all.

[kristopher]

68. "the biggest point that no one has bothered to ask questions about ..."

the biggest point that no one has bothered to ask questions about is why is it that the Malaysian air force in discovering an unidentified aircraft on their radar that wasn't supposed to be there yet supposedly did nothing at all when it's their JOB in such a situation to get the jets off the ground and go intercept the aircraft and find out what it is, whether or not it has an emergency, what that is and determine whether or not it needs to be shot down. It's absurd to believe that they DIDN'T do there job and intercept that aircraft and know exactly what happened to it which increasingly appears given their silence on this issue was that they did shoot it down and probably for a legitimate reason.

Mar 14th:
http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014754916#post34

[TorchTheWitch]

71. by "nobody" I meant nobody in authority and nobody in the media

What some average Joe says on a website forum doesn't amount to a spit in the ocean. I've said repeatedly that there is no possible way that the Malaysian air force did not get jets in the air to intercept and investigate that unidentified blip on their radar, that for whatever reason the plane was likely shot down, and all this other rubbish searching half a world away when authorities bloody well KNOW what happened to that plane is nothing more than a ridiculous smoke and mirror show to cover up what likely happened. But the world certainly isn't listening to me anymore than most of the members of DU that have fallen for the rubbish from both authorities and the media are.

Even this guy in the article I quoted who trained the Malaysian air force and knows damn well that they put jets in the air and intercepted that plane rather than sit on their asses as we're expected to believe didn't answer that question as it needed to be by SAYING there was no way they didn't get jets in the air and intercept that plane thus knowing exactly what happened to it and why and where it went down. If anyone knew they needed to stand up and address this fiasco it was this guy, but inexplicably he didn't instead answering the question really no better than simply repeating the same questions he was asked allowing this game to continue. He also knows better than anyone that if he did address this his words would be scrubbed from the public eye, and he'd likely have to watch his back. The world will never get to know what really happened to this plane thanks to this dog and pony circus that ensures those black boxes and wreckage that could prove it was shot down will ever be found. Once again, the authorities will blame it on someone who is dead that can't refute their claims. As far as the authorities are concerned it's better to let people believe that it was X dead person or people on the plane that were so evil they hijacked it or decided to commit suicide taking out hundreds of innocent people with them rather than admit a shoot down.

Years from now when it's far too late people will finally start asking the right questions, but they'll never be answered, and most people won't be listening anyway.

[LiberalElite]

39. Since one theory is that there was a fire -

did any of them say the plane appeared to be on fire?

[magical thyme]

45. it would have burned out long before

they could have seen a ghost ship on autopilot.

[BlueStreak]

43. Of course, none of these "witnesses" bothered to take a picture with their cell phone

[BlueEye]

44. Residents of tiny tropical islands carry cell phones?

We're not talking about Maui here.

[BlueStreak]

46. Maldives is not third world. Lots of resorts there.

They have a much higher rate of cell phone subscription than the US.

http://data.worldbank.org/indicator/IT.CEL.SETS.P2

[telecat]

47. There was no foul play

There is no reason to suspect foul play. I like the one rational writer I've seen on this subject, suggest an electrical failure and the turn everyone is so apoplectic about, was actually toward the closest airstrip capable of handling a 777.

[brooklynite]

49. That doesn't explain why the Co-Pilot said nothing about a fire...

or any other problem, in his last communication AFTER the ACARS was shut off.

[telecat]

50. Could it be...

An electrical fire took out comms fast enough the pilot couldn't get out a signal? Keep in mind, the last transmission from 370 was "Good night," a typical closing greeting in aviation. You're taking the word of liars with agendas. Do you know for a fact the last comms was after ACARS was turned off?

[BlueStreak]

51. No. In fact the Malaysians have retracted that claim

What they are now saying is that The last voice exchange was after the last ACARS message, but another ACARS message wasn't expected for 20 minutes or so. So there was a small time window where all hell could have broken loose to create the scenario you support.

[kristopher]

63. No, such a window doesn't exist.

The course change was programmed 12 minutes before the voice transmission.
The standard action if there were a problem at that point in the flight would have been to return to the point of departure.
Electrical fires are, by insulation design, not "flash events" and toxic fumes are not emitted.
The pilots would not be incapacitated under any scenario related to an electrical malfunction - they have gear for both breathing and seeing in smoke.

The aircraft was hijacked by person or persons unknown.

[BlueStreak]

64. The window comment was about ACARS

And I believe that stands as accurate. The flight control system is a different matter. I suppose it is your theory that the pilot went to great extremes to hide his activities, and then put information into the flight control system that would reveal his activities. That doesn't make much sense to me. Nor does a comment like "The pilots would not be incapacitated under any scenario related to an electrical malfunction".

(Full disclosure: I do not have any bests in Las Vegas where I will profit from the the outcome of this investigation.)

[kristopher]

67. I have no idea what happened.

For every hypothetical objection you can raise there is an equally plausible hypothetical explanation.

What we KNOW from the change in flight path is that the aircraft was hijacked. We don't know the scale of the effort, so we can't set accurate limits on what might have been possible for them. For all we know it was one person (insider or outsider) who figured out a way to crash the plane, or it could have been a sophisticated plot involving half a dozen independent cells of operatives with multiple decoy aircraft and landing strips. We don't know.

But we do know that it was hijacked in a most unusual fashion for a purpose that isn't clear.

[BlueStreak]

73. We don't "know" anything. Hikjacking is just one theory

and it doesn't stand out to me as being all that consistent with the few facts we know.

First things first. If we believe that "arc chart" based on the last ping, then the plane either flew north or it flew south.

If it flew south, then the only plausible scenarios are catastrophic equipment problems or suicidal pilot Hijacking or terrorism is nonsensical in the southern case. If it flew north, then hijacking and/or terrorism could be scenarios, but there isn't much to support any of those theories at this point.

The fact that the US is placing a lot of emphasis on the southern route is noteworthy, I believe.

[marions ghost]

55. So

who are you calling "liars with agendas?"

[Skittles]

57. us DUers!!!

that's an O'Reilly special

[marions ghost]

53. Don't think so

they would have made contact with the ground by some means at that time if there was a logical reason to turn around. And then, what happened to them, if they were heading to "the closest airstrip" since that was among the first paths searched?

Don't know about foul play, but something smells fishy.

[Skittles]

58. you're a liar with an agenda, marions ghost

ADMIT IT!

[marions ghost]

75. Oh...probably...............

[Skittles]

78. OMG

[marions ghost]

79. ;)

[kristopher]

62. There is every reason to suspect foul play.

At this point with the available evidence, clinging to a hypothesis about electrical failure is the equivalent of believing little green aliens lifted the aircraft into their ship with a tractor beam.

[Agschmid]

70. Are you saying there is something wrong with my theory!?!

Why I ought to...

[Agschmid]

69. It turned twice after that... Just FYI.

The theory you have posted does not make sense with the data available.

[marions ghost]

54. Interesting thread

some touching down on a fly by?

What about this LBN?

http://www.thestar.com.my/News/Nation/2014/03/19/Missing-MH370-Onboard-computer-programmed-to-turn/

-------------
NEW YORK: The on-board flight computer on missing MAS flight MH370 was programmed to turn 12 minutes before co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid said “All right, good night”.

NBC News, quoting sources, is reporting that the plane’s abrupt u-turn was programmed into the on-board computer well before the co-pilot signed off with air traffic controllers.

A former National Transportation Safety Board crash investigator and NBC News analyst Greg Feith told the channel: “Some pilots program an alternate flight plan in the event of an emergency.
-------------

Sounds like the pilots have some leeway with an "alternate flight plan" and this could have been the case here, but wouldn't they know what this destination was, since the ground knows it turned before the last pilot verbal contact. I understood that this flight pattern and any alternate would be known by ground control.

[IDemo]

61. Malaysia denies reported sighting of MH370 in Maldives

Malaysia on Wednesday dismissed reports of a possible sighting of the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 by islanders in the Maldives.

The Malaysian acting transport minister Hishammuddin Hussein told reporters in Kuala Lumpur that the authorities in the Maldives have told Malaysia the reports are "not true".

"I can confirm that the Malaysian Chief of the Defence Force has contacted his counterpart in the Maldives, who has confirmed that these reports are not true," Hishammuddin said.

Whilst the disappearance of the Boeing 777 jet, carrying 239 passengers has left the whole world in bewilderment, several residents of Kuda Huvadhoo told Haveeru on Tuesday that they saw a "low flying jumbo jet" at around 6:15am on March 8.

http://www.haveeru.com.mv/news/54081