Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370

On March 8, 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, a Boeing 777-200ER carrying 227 passengers and 12 crew members, departed Kuala Lumpur International Airport at 12:41 a.m. bound for Beijing. At 1:19 a.m., the last verbal communication from the cockpit came: 'Good night, Malaysian three seven zero.'

Minutes later, the aircraft's transponder was switched off. Military radar tracked the plane as it deviated from its planned route, turning back across the Malay Peninsula and heading northwest over the Andaman Sea before radar contact was lost. Satellite data later indicated the aircraft continued flying for approximately six more hours, heading south over the Indian Ocean.

The largest and most expensive search in aviation history covered vast areas of the southern Indian Ocean floor. Several pieces of debris confirmed to be from MH370 washed ashore on islands and coastlines around the Indian Ocean, with the first piece—a flaperon—found on Réunion Island in July 2015. However, the main wreckage and black boxes were never located.

The mystery of what happened aboard MH370 has generated numerous theories, from pilot suicide to mechanical failure to hijacking. A Malaysian government investigation concluded that the aircraft's course was changed by manual inputs but could not determine who was responsible or why. The disappearance remains aviation's greatest unsolved mystery.