MH 370 - Seeking answers that will never be forthcoming

Nobody can possibly say that this aeroplane will never be found, though I do agree that spending much more on searching is a wrong priority in my view.

There are many issues that are more significant in the bigger picture for spending tax-payers; money on ...

But life being what it is, one might conclude that World is a fairly topsy-turvy place run by irrational humans. 

Best wishes from George

winkyincanada posted:

http://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-35747869

This is incredibly sad. The airline and authorities should be forthright. They should truthfully explain to them that the plane will never be found, and that no more information regarding the crash exists.

100% agree,  but the problem is that will result in massive outburst of grief & another round of accusations & recriminations & it'll still be left unfinished,  except the lawyers will be a little richer.    Problem is no closure, no grave etc.,  it might be that if they found the wreck,  no matter how inaccessible, its a grave & is a form of closure. 

George Fredrik Fiske posted:

Nobody can possibly say that this aeroplane will never be found, though I do agree that spending much more on searching is a wrong priority in my view.

There are many issues that are more significant in the bigger picture for spending tax-payers; money on ...

But life being what it is, one might conclude that World is a fairly topsy-turvy place run by irrational humans. 

Best wishes from George

In dollar terms, the spending on the search is trivial. But as long as it it continues, some of the relatives will find it difficult to move on. The plane of course, will never be found.

In my view the relatives that want the search to continue indefinitely in the face of all evidence are in some ways suffering from a form of delusion. Many of their comments border on paranoia. They are at risk of descending into mental illness and need professional intervention to assist them with their recovery. It is desperately sad. Only the lawyers are profiting from this tragic, maudlin circus.

There are two separate issues:-
The investigation of this event.
Dealing with the families of those involved.

The investigation includes the search for the missing aeroplane and an attempt to discover:-
What happened
Why it happened
What can be learned to prevent re-occurrences

The unusual sequence of an investigation is:-
Field investigation
Post-field investigation
Report production

Investigations can take a long time. As an example, the investigation and report into the First Air Boeing 737 crash Flight FAB6560 at Resolute Bay Nunavut on 20th August 2011 is IMHO, a model investigation and factual report.

The crash occurred on 11th August 2011. The Report was issued on 25th March 2014 ie two and half years later. The aircraft was found within an hour of the crash ie as soon as the fog lifted. There were three survivors. There were lots of people on scene, one of them a close pilot friend of mine. The CVR and FDR were recovered and provided vital insight as to what happened. The aircraft wreckage provided vital clues, although several instruments were never found.

The Canadian TSB provided updates on its investigations eg an interim report on 5th January 2012 (6 months after the crash)

In short, very little mystery, widespread evidence, an open society conducting the investigation (despite a military presence and possible involvement) and yet, the Report takes two and a half years to be published.

Dealing with the relatives of those involved is separate.

The relatives of MH370 are expecting too much if they are wanting clear answers NOW. OTOH, if the deadline for submitting claims was yesterday. They have no option but to submit the most demanding of claims possible. The survivors and relatives of those lost at Resolute would have had to do the same. On what other basis do you submit a claim when the details of the incident are as yet unknowns ?

However, as in the Resolute case, the Malaysian Authorities could (and IMHO should) issue an interim Report. This should make clear what is known so far and what further investigation is planned. The Authorities might also issue a statement based on such an interim Report making it clear that they consider the plane is lost, with no survivors.

Unfortunately to date, the Malaysian Authorities haven’t managed to convey any convincing openness to their investigations or statements. This doesn’t engender confidence that they have revealed all that they know. There appears to be a lack of trust.

For this reason, I sense a great deal of mis-trust by the relatives and I believe it is this mis-trust that is at the root of most of the anger and claims.

To be fair, I understand that despite the TSB Report for Resolute, there is an element of mis-trust into the events surrounding that crash.

PS I think this means I agree at least in part with Winky...........

As a related aside the photograph of the reconstructed cockpit from the 'plane shot down by a rocket over the Ukraine last year was one of the most memorable images of the year. Ghostly and sombre.

The work done to build that (and other similar debris reconstructions) strikes me as quite incredibly skilful. I can still see the Lockerbie reconstruction in my mind's eye too. I had a personal connection to that event-and seeing the plane with the explosion evidence as it was rebuilt in a hangar I found incredibly moving.

There is a benefit of the intensive under sea investigation in that we are gaining knowledge of the seabed, regardless of finding the plane. Searching for the plane is a good reason to explore and map the seabed.

We all deal with grief in differing ways, at least the painful experiences I have endured did not include any mystery and open ends.  The most horrifying I have read of was a person enduring the disappearance of a child who was never found and the parent said for the past 30 years EVERY TIME the phone rang (to that point) there was a moment of hope quickly followed by renewed resignation.  EVERY TIME the phone rang for thirty years.  The hope, however minuscule, along with the pain, forever unbearable, never left.  A lot to endure.

Observers find simple answers.  Not necessarily reality.

China doesn't seem to want to help the relatives and friends of those who went missing.

At an anniversary "Church" (or Temple) service today, there was a disproportionate uniformed and plain-clothed police presence.

The Malaysian and Chinese Governments don't appear to have handled events following the aircraft's disappearance at all well. And in this respect, there doesn't seem to be any move to improve matters.

Derek Wright posted:

There is a benefit of the intensive under sea investigation in that we are gaining knowledge of the seabed, regardless of finding the plane. Searching for the plane is a good reason to explore and map the seabed.

well, I certainly agree that the search should continue. As winky kindly points out, the cost is trivial.

Stopping the search won't bring closure (whatever that means) to the friends and relatives of the victims. If the search brings to light useful maritime knowledge, even better.

The Malaysian Government could do well to publish a  peer-reviewed interim report on what is known and what is on-going.