4:12 AM
15 March 2014
He said the "movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane".
The plane disappeared a week ago with 239 people on board.
The flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:40 local time (16:40 GMT) on 8 March and disappeared off air traffic controllers' screens at about 01:20.
Shortly afterwards, near the border between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic control, the plane's transponder - which emits an identifying signal - was switched off, he said.
According to a military radar, the flight then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.
A satellite was able to pick up a signal from the plane until 08:11 local time - more than seven hours after it lost radar contact - although it was unable to give a precise location, Mr Razak said.
Mr Razak said that in light of the new evidence, the investigation had "entered a new phase" and would focus on the crew and passengers on board.
Addressing reports that the plane had been hijacked, he said only "we are still investigating all possibilities as to what caused MH370 to deviate".
Shortly after the news conference finished, police began searching the Kuala Lumpur home of the plane's pilot, 53-year-old Zaharie Ahmad Shah, Reuters quotes one police officer as saying.
'Fruitless search' Malaysia's prime minister confirmed much of what had been leaked to the media, from US agencies and satellite companies, in the last 48 hours.
His government had been facing severe criticism for not being more open about what it knows, our correspondent says.
China - which had 153 citizens on board the flight - has urged
Malaysia to continue providing it with "thorough and exact information"
on the search, state news agency Xinhua said.
The foreign ministry said it was sending technical specialists to participate in the investigation, and appealed for the help of other countries and organisations.
The families of those on board the flight have endured an agonising wait for news.
Along with the Chinese passengers, there were 38 Malaysians and citizens of Iran, the US, Canada, Indonesia, Australia, India, France, New Zealand, Ukraine, Russia, Taiwan and the Netherlands on board.
An extensive search of the seas around Malaysia - involving 14 countries, 43 ships and 58 aircraft - since the plane disappeared had proved fruitless.
Messages of support for those aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 lie in the viewing gallery at Kuala Lumpur airport
Malaysia's PM Najib Razak confirmed the
plane's communications systems had been disabled and it may then have
been flown elsewhere for some seven hours
Malaysia's Prime Minister: "These movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane"
The
communications systems of missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 were
deliberately disabled, Malaysia's Prime Minister Najib Razak has said.
According to satellite and radar evidence, he said, the plane
then changed course and could have continued flying for a further seven
hours.He said the "movements are consistent with the deliberate action of someone on the plane".
The plane disappeared a week ago with 239 people on board.
The flight left Kuala Lumpur for Beijing at 00:40 local time (16:40 GMT) on 8 March and disappeared off air traffic controllers' screens at about 01:20.
Continue reading the main story
“Start Quote
Malaysia PM Najib RazakThe Malaysian authorities have refocused their investigation into the crew and passengers on board”
Mr Razak told a news conference
that new satellite evidence shows "with a high degree of certainty" that
the one of the aircraft's communications systems - the Aircraft and
Communications Addressing and Reporting System- was disabled just before
it reached the east coast of Malaysia.
ACARS is a service that allows computers aboard the plane to
"talk" to computers on the ground, relaying in-flight information about
the health of its systems.Shortly afterwards, near the border between Malaysian and Vietnamese air traffic control, the plane's transponder - which emits an identifying signal - was switched off, he said.
According to a military radar, the flight then turned and flew back over Malaysia before heading in a north-west direction.
A satellite was able to pick up a signal from the plane until 08:11 local time - more than seven hours after it lost radar contact - although it was unable to give a precise location, Mr Razak said.
Continue reading the main story
ACARS system
- Aircraft and Communications Addressing and Reporting System is a service that allows computers aboard the plane to "talk" to computers on the ground, relaying in-flight information about the health of its systems.
- Messages are transmitted either by radio or digital signals via satellites, and can cover anything from the status of the plane's engines to a faulty toilet.
- This provides ground crews with vital diagnostic information, allowing maintenance to be carried out more quickly.
He went on to say that based on
this new data, investigators "have determined the plane's last
communication with a satellite was in one of two possible corridors":
- a northern corridor stretching from the border of Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan through to northern Thailand
- a southern corridor stretching from Indonesia to the southern Indian Ocean
Mr Razak said that in light of the new evidence, the investigation had "entered a new phase" and would focus on the crew and passengers on board.
Addressing reports that the plane had been hijacked, he said only "we are still investigating all possibilities as to what caused MH370 to deviate".
Shortly after the news conference finished, police began searching the Kuala Lumpur home of the plane's pilot, 53-year-old Zaharie Ahmad Shah, Reuters quotes one police officer as saying.
'Fruitless search' Malaysia's prime minister confirmed much of what had been leaked to the media, from US agencies and satellite companies, in the last 48 hours.
His government had been facing severe criticism for not being more open about what it knows, our correspondent says.
Malaysia's Prime Minister: Authorities are now trying to trace the plane across two possible "corridors"
The foreign ministry said it was sending technical specialists to participate in the investigation, and appealed for the help of other countries and organisations.
The families of those on board the flight have endured an agonising wait for news.
Along with the Chinese passengers, there were 38 Malaysians and citizens of Iran, the US, Canada, Indonesia, Australia, India, France, New Zealand, Ukraine, Russia, Taiwan and the Netherlands on board.
An extensive search of the seas around Malaysia - involving 14 countries, 43 ships and 58 aircraft - since the plane disappeared had proved fruitless.
Messages of support for those aboard Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 lie in the viewing gallery at Kuala Lumpur airport
Malaysia's PM Najib Razak confirmed the
plane's communications systems had been disabled and it may then have
been flown elsewhere for some seven hours
The sweep of the South China Sea has been
called off, as the investigation "enters a new phase" and refocuses its
search west over the Indian Ocean.
The agonising wait for news on the fate of their loved ones continues for the relatives of those on board on the airline.
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