The disappearance of Flight 370 is right out of the al-Qaida playbook.
After 9/11, al-Qaida wanted to break into cockpits of passenger aircraft using a shoe bomb. This has been corroborated by MI6 with an al-Qaida operative they apprehended.
However, Flight 370 is a military operation and represents a considerable investment, one that would have to be taken on by a country like Iran. Iran sponsors terrorism. Malaysia as a country has not sponsored terrorism. However, Islamic extremists from Malaysia participated in the 9/11 act of terrorism against the United States.
I believe that it isn’t out of the realm of possibility that ground crew and flight crew participated in the hijacking of Flight 370. If the pilot or co-pilot were sleeper agents of an Islamic extremist group, then that too would go a long way to making the hijacking successful.
The fact that two passengers were traveling with stolen passports supports hijacking. These same passengers had tickets purchased by an Iranian using cash. Nice people don’t travel using stolen passports. The penalties for getting caught with stolen passports are severe. The passports were not checked to even see if they were stolen. A check could have been made with Interpol. Hijackers knew the passports would not be checked.
The most important aspect of the entire incident is that the transponder in the cockpit was turned off deliberately. Other data from the aircraft indicates that it flew for seven hours after the transponder in the cockpit was turned off.
Flight 370 was flown west past the tip of India and then north straight on to Iran. Flight 370 could have landed at Zahedan, which you can use Google-Earth to view. It is of sufficient size to accommodate the aircraft. There is also a prison in Zahedan, Iran, that could have been used for passengers. I don’t believe the passengers would be kept alive.
Fishermen have said they saw Flight 370 flying extremely low in the Maldives. This was an effort to fly under the radar of countries in the area. I believe the pilot of Flight 370 was very skilled and had practiced how to fly the aircraft under military radar.
In conclusion, flying the aircraft south toward Australia is about the most unlikely of all outcomes. To this date, not one single piece of the aircraft has been discovered in the ocean anywhere. The aircraft is likely being modified and repainted. It could be used as a platform to attack Washington, D.C., the primary target. The secondary target is likely Tel Aviv, Israel.
The state of Israel is on heightened alert at this time. I believe Israel understands this threat and is prepared. I believe the United States is also prepared to meet this threat.
Dana Stern
