Flight MH370/2014-03-08
Timeline of events involving air traffic controllers in response to the in-flight diversion of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370
From 01:27:00 MYT to 06:50:22 MYT Template:Day 001
(1722 UTC to 2250:22 UTC Friday, 7 March 2014)
Background
Figure 1.1C - Diversion from Filed Flight Plan Route - Civilian Radar
(in pictorial form and not to scale)
Source:
Safety Investigation Report MH370/01/2018
1.1.3 (2)
Malaysian Air Traffic Control Primary Radar Observations
This section of the Timeline details the sequence of events as air traffic controllers struggled to comprehend that MH370 did not continue towards Beijing through Vietnamese airspace.
However, while the air traffic controllers were wondering where the aircraft was and making phone calls and asking questions the evidence of a turnback was in front of them on their radar screens. The 'blip' that represented the 'missing' aircraft was captured by civilian primary radar.
Like the military observations there were periods of actual data, periods of 'coasting' - where the radar interpolates a track between actual radar returns - and periods of interrupted data. This is shown in the adjacent diagram.
A 'blip' is a spot of light on a radar screen indicating the position of a detected aircraft.
Overall, the civilian primary radar observations of an aircraft believed to be MH370 after flight diversion extended from 01:30:37 MYT to 01:44:52 MYT. The periods covered by the civilian radar observations provide the background to other events during the developing emergency.
The aircraft in each radar track is identified by a number assigned by the radar system. For primary radar each code number has the prefix letter P (P = Primary). Even though the number is different for each observation, it is believed to be the same aircraft.
There were four significant observations by primary civilian radar, coded P3362, P3401, P3415 and P3426, which show that MH370 tracked west across Malaysia until it was south of Penang. However, the Kuala Lumpur air traffic controllers did not notice or respond to the appearance of a strayed or unidentified aircraft within their area of responsibility.
Last Communications With MH370
MH370 Failed To Contact HCM ACC
Air Turn Back
534_47 MYT