The terrible loss of life in the Malaysian air crash is tragic. But the attempt to ramp up a terrorism scare is ghoulish. We even had both the BBC and Sky speculating that it was the Uighurs. Now the suppression of Uighur culture and religion by the Chinese had been a great and long-term evil, and the West has been only too eager to shoehorn their story into the “Islamic terrorism” story. There is of course an enormous security industry, both government and private, which makes a very fat living out of “combating Islamic terrorism”, and a media which make a fat living out of helping to ramp it. Their spreading of fear has been extraordinarily successful given that Islamic terrorism is an extraordinarily low level threat and people throughout the Western world are vastly more likely to drown in their own bath than be killed by an Islamic terrorist. Indeed you are about 1,000 times more likely to be killed by a member of your own family than by an Islamic terrorist, though the risk of either is extremely slim.
The media uncritically trotted out the story that it was Uighur terrorists who were responsible for the dreadful knife attack at a Chinese railway station – with no evidence except that the Chinese government say so. Only when they impugn the Uighurs does the western media drop its wary disbelief of statements from the Chinese government.
There is no evidence at all that the Malaysian plane was brought down by terrorists. The Air France plane crash in 2009, for example, was caused by ice crystals in the pitot tubes giving incorrect air speed readings to the autopilot – this was because the plane had been incorrectly cleaned with a pressure hose rather than damp cloths. Most air crashes are caused by faulty maintenance procedures. [A number of people have since commented that pilot error is a more frequent cause. They may be right – but Uighur terrorists it ain’t].
The two people on board with false passports were routed on to Amsterdam, and the obvious explanation is that they were illegal immigrants who had bought stolen passports. This is very common indeed. I know from my own diplomatic experience that passports frequently have to be replaced by tourists who no longer have them. I also know (and I do not refer to the specific individuals referred here) that very frequently indeed the person who has “lost” the passport has sold it. At tourist hotspots likely people are often approached to sell their passport, (about US$600 is the going rate for an EU passport) and then declare it stolen and apply for a new one. It is a scam you encounter frequently in backpacking destinations, Thailand being a key example.
It is a peculiar kind of terrorism which does not seek to claim “credit” or publicise what has been done.. No suicide videos have emerged. That the Uighurs would attack a plane from a state of their fellow Muslims is a ludicrous claim. Do not be taken in by the Ministry of Fear and its media lackeys.
While most plane crashes are tragic accidents not all are. A clue to whether the Malaysian disaster was a tragic accident or pre-planned may be found in the passenger list. This list of politicians killed in crashes is, as it says, very incomplete.
http://www.globalresearch.ca/ukraine-the-new-cold-war-heats-up/5372694
The one passenger many avoid mentioning is Bernt Carlsson who was killed in the Lockerbie crash.
While this may be an accident I think we need to wait and see what evidence is found. The test is whether any evidence is given proper scrutiny. It may be a false flag, blaming others to create an issue.
But I do agree that we should not believe the media and its lackeys especially after the way the Ukraine crisis has been presented.
Thank you for writing this!
My first thoughts on hearing this news, were:
– how can they claim terrorism when the plane has not even been found yet?
– why on earth are the Americans investigating whether a Malaysian plane crash is terrorism?
– if the Americans are investigating this crash as a possible terrorist attack, then stakes are high that it WILL be spun as a terrorist attack – by Evil Muslims, naturally.
The media gave no hint as to the expected number of passengers travelling with fake passports on normal flights. We need to wait
for analysis such as on BBC’s ‘More or Less’ which examines how
media handle numbers.
Spot on Craig.
Thank you.
Re the Air France crash, it’s “pitot tubes”, not “pilot”, and do you have a source for the theory that incorrect cleaning caused a fault?
Completely agree with the majority of your article – if I recall correctly, when the Air France 447 plane crashed there was speculation that there were two people on board with links to terrorist activity. Ultimately, this had absolutely nothing to do with the crash.
In relation to your comment about the pitot tubes not being cleaned correctly, which in turn caused the crash – is this correct? I was under the impression that while the pitot tubes, though they failed and provided false airspeed readings, it was in fact ‘simple but persistent human error’ that was the most direct cause of the crash. Indeed, my information is coming from Wikipedia, so it might not be the most accurate.
David Sillitot
Thanks, amended. Yes, it was an episode of “Air Crash Investigation” on the National Geographic Channel. They reported there was a recreation of cleaning the panel with the pitot tube in with a hose, then putting the panel in a freezer. I accept that can’t definitively prove the theory. Anyway, main point is it was not terrorism. Planes do crash.
I had to laugh yesterday when Trowbridge provided the counter conspiracy theory in double quick time.
“The Air France plane crash in 2009, for example, was caused by ice crystals in the pitot tubes giving incorrect air speed readings to the autopilot – this was because the plane had been incorrectly cleaned with a pressure hose rather than damp cloths. Most air crashes are caused by faulty maintenance procedures.”
Utter rubbish on just about all counts. Try reading the official crash report. Very few crashes are directly caused by bad maintenance. I suggest you look at official statistics before coming out with such misleading and ignorant statements.
David Sims
Really? What is the major cause of air crashes then?
Pilot error, apparently.
http://www.planecrashinfo.com/cause.htm
http://www.dnaindia.com/mumbai/report-pilot-error-no-1-reason-behind-plane-crashes-50-year-data-shows-1387357
http://www.statisticbrain.com/airplane-crash-statistics/
“Most air crashes are caused by faulty maintenance procedures.”
Are you sure about this? It’s a topic that has been studied in huge detail, and my understanding is that pilot fatigue (and error) and miscommunications with air traffic controllers are far more common factors.
On the topic of governmental shenanigans, nobody ever queried why there were THREE holes in “jihad video” bomber Khans solo Edgeware carriage, and nowhere near where he was seated anyways. No autopsies either,all injuries were to lower limbs, unless the muzzies were wearing feetpacks instead of backpacks. Bliar.
Rachael, Ed,
Thanks. I wonder if pilot error is becoming less frequent a cause now, given the sophistication of the planes and the extent to which they fly themselves? Would a 10 year study give the same result as a fifty year study? I also wonder whether blaming the pilot is not the easiest way out for manufacturers and airlines, who are able to influence the feed of data to the investigators.
Anyway, let me accept your statement that pilot error is the most common cause. Not, however, Uighur terrorists.
The presumption seems to be that there was a good bit of pilot error/bad training involved in the Air France crash
http://www.nbcnews.com/storyline/missing-jet/what-does-air-france-447-tell-us-about-missing-malaysian-n47846
Not very well written (‘censor’ for ‘sensor’, etc) but the conclusions are there. Precisely the wrong response to a possibly spurious warning as even a learner glider pilot would know…
Excellent article. Thank you for taking the time to write this important piece.
“The presumption seems to be that there was a good bit of pilot error/bad training involved in the Air France crash ”
Indeed. The real reason the aircraft was lost was the crew’s inability to deal with the failure of the pitot tubes rather than the failure itself.
Back on topic newpapers and the media generally love to indulge in wild speculation and the more lurid the better. I tend not to take any notice.
Yes, it is deeply depressing to see people fall for this patently phoney terror threat. I remember during the time of the IRA bombings they told us to carry on with our daily lives and maintain a sense of proportion. They told us to stay calm. Today they tell us to be scared. Tony Blair’s tanks at Heathrow still takes the biscuit though.
what we are being told is usually lies, it can never be an air plane fault. so it must be pilot error or terrorism.
what is the truth about Ukraine?
Just the expected cheap shot from you ‘ELSO, as I have been working on the sabotaged Asiana Flight 214 since it happened, and you can find the thread on The Local in Sweden if you look.
This just looks to me to be successfull repeat of that failed effort to kill all those Chinese on board back then.
John Goss at 9:59 am said: “While most plane crashes are tragic accidents not all are. A clue to whether the Malaysian disaster was a tragic accident or pre-planned may be found in the passenger list. This list of politicians killed in crashes is, as it says, very incomplete. The one passenger many avoid mentioning is Bernt Carlsson who was killed in the Lockerbie crash.”
John, could you please confirm the correct url for the “list of politicians killed in plane disasters”.
An excellent Piece Craig……
I was saying they same thing to a friend yesterday re bbc Hints about Terrorism…false passports… you have thrown some new light on this Re passports, the Uighurs Thanks.
I’ve been trying to look into a report that there was a communication with another aircraft 30 or so moments before it disappeared.
The incomplete passengers lists of the four 9/11 planes are quite relevant to the tragedy, as they leave out the 15 unarmed agents, probably CIA ones, but possibly ones of Meir Dagan’s Mossad, but trying to link Bernt Carlsson to the Palme assassination because of what he apparently knew, and was involved in telling, seems a non-starter because the Anglo-Americans killed the statsminister, not the South Africans.
Just to add to the existing comments about the Air France crash. All the reports I’ve read indicate it was the pilot’s inability to deal with the instrument reading error caused by the pitot tubes freezing up, compounded by a number of other facts – captain was resting and the most inexperienced pilot was the one who made the bad decision that pull the plane into stall (he raised the nose when he should have lowered it); his mistake wasn’t picked up by the captain until they were so close to the ocean that it was too late to correct.
Craig, your point that: “I wonder if pilot error is becoming less frequent a cause now, given the sophistication of the planes and the extent to which they fly themselves?” is an interesting one because in the Air France case the pitot tubes caused the autopilot to cut out and the co-pilot was then unable to cope. It actually suggests that pilots may be TOO reliant on software/autopilot systems and perhaps complacency creeps in. In any case, I’m sure that training procedures have been changed in light of Air France.
Craig,
I hate to say this but you’re going to look a right tit.
Aircraft flown by high quality international carriers like MAS do not disintegrate at 35,000ft from mechanical error in perfect weather and with a highly experienced aircrew.
There is no parallel with Air France flight 447
– Meteorological conditions were the exact opposite
– MH370 had a very experienced flight crew (unlike AF447)
– The Boeing 777 flown by MAS is magnitudes safer than the Airbus 330
The glaringly obvious can not be obfuscated by defaming an Airline or its deceased pilots.
Have you spoken to the pilots of Asiana 214, Trowbridge? They seem to be rather convinced that they had cocked up.
http://www.popularmechanics.com/technology/aviation/crashes/what-weve-learned-so-far-from-the-asiana-flight-214-investigation-16264162
‘the auto-throttle changed from “thrust” to “hold” at an altitude of 1600 feet. The report also included testimony from the pilot’s colleagues who said the trainee, Lee Gang Guk, had been warned that the auto-throttle doesn’t always re-engage as it should after going into the hold mode. Representatives from Boeing and the other aviation companies present also made the point that the onus is on the pilot to transition to a visual landing in such a situation.’
And –
‘Overall, simulators are generally regarded as having raised the safety performance of airlines over the last few decades because of their accuracy in replicating the experience of flying through dangerous conditions that many pilots may rarely if ever encounter on the job. But the pilots aboard the 777, who received most of their training in simulators, said they hadn’t had enough manual training in landing the plane at an airport such as San Francisco, known for its challenging conditions.’
Ascribing demonstrable cockups to malign intervention by terrorists (whether ‘theirs’ or ‘ours’) is an ace way of raising public paranoia, just as Craig says. Which I guess means Trowbridge is firmly on the side of the authorities. At last! My very own conspiracy theory!
“This just looks to me to be successfull repeat of that failed effort to kill all those Chinese on board back then.”
This speaks volumes for your research methods.
Good post Craig- the various ‘terrorist scenarios’ being pushed by the securicrats all seem pretty far fetched to me.
The scenario you outline in para 4 seems much more likely, given that Amsterdam was the final destination for the 2 travellers alleged to be carrying false passports. There is a large Indonesian descended population in the Netherlands, and it is likely that flights originating from there get greater scrutiny from Dutch immigration (eg high tech scanners to check for false passports). However I doubt if the Schiphol authorities have enough of these to apply to all passengers arriving from SE Asia, so if an Indonesian wishes to enter the Netherlands illegally, it probably makes sense to start the journey from another ASEAN country, taking advantage of the visa free travel arrangements that now apply-
http://www.aseanvisa.com/malaysia/malaysia-visa.html
Certainly, quite wrong when sabotage is left out, blaming pilot error instead.
In the three accidents I have investigated – that of the Sukoi 100 which flew into that olacano in Indonesia, the one at SFO, and this one all seem to be the result of sabotage.
The Sukoi had an in cabin failure, apparent the air conditioning system to fail, and the pilot descending 3,500 feet without any person or explanation, and then crashing into the mountain during the resulting confusion was the result of foul play, as are the crashes of the two Boeing 777s.
No evidence of any sort yet. So all media speculation is just that; including, of course, ill researched blogs like this.