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The Hunt for MH370
"A staggering, meticulous and frequently spine-chilling work of longform journalism." Trent Dalton
Somewhere deep beneath the wild seas of the southern Indian Ocean, perhaps in the eerie underwater canyons of Broken Ridge along the Seventh Arc satellite band, lies the answer to the world's greatest aviation mystery.
Why, on the night of 8 March 2014, did Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 suddenly U-turn, zig-zag up the Straits of Malacca, then vanish with 239 souls on board?
Was it an elaborate murder-suicide by a rogue pilot? A terrible accident such as onboard fire, rapid decompression or systems failure? A terrorist hijacking gone wrong? Or something else entirely?
Award-winning journalist Ean Higgins has led the world media's coverage of this incredible saga and draws on years of interviews with aviation experts, victims' families, air crash investigators and professional hunters across land, sea and sky to dissect the riddle of MH370's fate.
PRAISE FOR THE HUNT FOR MH370
'The Hunt for MH370 is a riveting page-turner written with the drama and intrigue of a thriller. Piece by tantalising piece, Ean Higgins unpuzzles this most baffling of mysteries, asking dangerous questions and revealing shocking truths.' Dick Smith
'The disappearance of MH370 remains the greatest and most pressing mystery in aviation history that demands answers for both the families of the stricken passengers and the travelling public. No journalist has been more relentless in the pursuit of the truth of MH370 than Ean Higgins. The Hunt for MH370 is an engrossing book in which Higgins has meticulously pieced together the puzzle of the doomed flight from its vanishing to the flawed investigation and the largest maritime search ever that leads the reader to a chilling conclusion that is almost impossible to comprehend.'
Paul Whittaker, Chief Executive Sky News and former editor-in-chief, The Australian
Somewhere deep beneath the wild seas of the southern Indian Ocean, perhaps in the eerie underwater canyons of Broken Ridge along the Seventh Arc satellite band, lies the answer to the world's greatest aviation mystery.
Why, on the night of 8 March 2014, did Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 suddenly U-turn, zig-zag up the Straits of Malacca, then vanish with 239 souls on board?
Was it an elaborate murder-suicide by a rogue pilot? A terrible accident such as onboard fire, rapid decompression or systems failure? A terrorist hijacking gone wrong? Or something else entirely?
Award-winning journalist Ean Higgins has led the world media's coverage of this incredible saga and draws on years of interviews with aviation experts, victims' families, air crash investigators and professional hunters across land, sea and sky to dissect the riddle of MH370's fate.
PRAISE FOR THE HUNT FOR MH370
'The Hunt for MH370 is a riveting page-turner written with the drama and intrigue of a thriller. Piece by tantalising piece, Ean Higgins unpuzzles this most baffling of mysteries, asking dangerous questions and revealing shocking truths.' Dick Smith
'The disappearance of MH370 remains the greatest and most pressing mystery in aviation history that demands answers for both the families of the stricken passengers and the travelling public. No journalist has been more relentless in the pursuit of the truth of MH370 than Ean Higgins. The Hunt for MH370 is an engrossing book in which Higgins has meticulously pieced together the puzzle of the doomed flight from its vanishing to the flawed investigation and the largest maritime search ever that leads the reader to a chilling conclusion that is almost impossible to comprehend.'
Paul Whittaker, Chief Executive Sky News and former editor-in-chief, The Australian
304 pages, Paperback
Published February 26, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
March 3, 2019
The Hunt for MH370
by Ean Higgins
As the anniversary approaches of the disappearance of Flight MH370 with 239 people on board, the worlds media are revisiting one of aviation's greatest mysteries.
This was an interesting but sad read,especially the testimony's of family members who lost loved loves. One woman with two young children can't sell her house because she doesn't have a death certificate for her husband and in her own words, I'm not going to to ask for a death certificate from the government of the country that killed my husband. That was heartbreaking.
'The disappearance of MH370 remains the greatest and most pressing mystery in aviation history that demands answers for both the families of the stricken passengers and the travelling public. Yesterday Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad promised to continue the search for missing plane MH370 for “as long as there is hope”, For now there is no proof about what actually happened on MH370 but hopefully that won't always be the case. 4 stars
by Ean Higgins
As the anniversary approaches of the disappearance of Flight MH370 with 239 people on board, the worlds media are revisiting one of aviation's greatest mysteries.
This was an interesting but sad read,especially the testimony's of family members who lost loved loves. One woman with two young children can't sell her house because she doesn't have a death certificate for her husband and in her own words, I'm not going to to ask for a death certificate from the government of the country that killed my husband. That was heartbreaking.
'The disappearance of MH370 remains the greatest and most pressing mystery in aviation history that demands answers for both the families of the stricken passengers and the travelling public. Yesterday Prime Minister Mahathir bin Mohamad promised to continue the search for missing plane MH370 for “as long as there is hope”, For now there is no proof about what actually happened on MH370 but hopefully that won't always be the case. 4 stars
May 17, 2019
1.5.
I'd easily recommend the 4 Corners report on this story over this book.
Ean Higgins has written a piece of long-form journalism on the disappearance of MH370. The first half was interesting but felt a bit sensationalist and emotive and biased rather than objective and analytical.
But then the last half felt very padded out and was very boring. I'm convinced it was only put in to make the book look bigger. Extended descriptions about Higgins' trouble getting clarification from transport authorities about their opinion on how the plane landed. Or about the (seemingly irrelevant) political context of Malaysia. Or about a Senate Estimates Committee hearing.
I'm also not sure I learned anything fundamentally new from reading this book that I didn't already know from news reports over the years.
So basically, don't bother.
Also, don't read this book if you're going to fly anywhere soon.
I'd easily recommend the 4 Corners report on this story over this book.
Ean Higgins has written a piece of long-form journalism on the disappearance of MH370. The first half was interesting but felt a bit sensationalist and emotive and biased rather than objective and analytical.
But then the last half felt very padded out and was very boring. I'm convinced it was only put in to make the book look bigger. Extended descriptions about Higgins' trouble getting clarification from transport authorities about their opinion on how the plane landed. Or about the (seemingly irrelevant) political context of Malaysia. Or about a Senate Estimates Committee hearing.
I'm also not sure I learned anything fundamentally new from reading this book that I didn't already know from news reports over the years.
So basically, don't bother.
Also, don't read this book if you're going to fly anywhere soon.
April 5, 2020
I’ve never been overseas and I don’t fly much – once, maybe twice a year. But I like planes and I find aviation really interesting, especially the ways in which things can go wrong. I’ll readily admit I watch a little too much Air Crash Investigations and this book isn’t the first I’ve read on a plane disaster. But MH370 is different. Because while there’s been plenty of plane mishaps and disasters in the world, these days the technology is so advanced that it seems everyone knows where any plane is at any given time. You can download the FlightRadar24 app to your phone or tablet or check it online and find any plane that’s in the air, basically. However, six years ago, MH370 a Malaysian Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing simply vanished. It left Malaysian airspace and should’ve connected to the air traffic control at Ho Chi Minh City within moments, but never did. By the time Ho Chi Minh City noticed and contacted Kuala Lumpur, Malaysian Airlines flight 370 had been dark for over 20 minutes. When it never resurfaced and was never heard from again, it was assumed it had crashed somewhere in the South China Sea, during the time when it should’ve been contacting Vietnamese traffic control. As we all know now, that wasn’t the case and the final resting place of MH370 is unknown, but guessed at roughly being somewhere in the southern Indian Ocean, thousands of kilometres off the coast of Western Australia. For some reason, the plane left its predetermined course, turned right, then banked left back almost 180 degrees the way it had came. And then flew on for another seven or so hours until it finally ran out of fuel and either crashed or was put into a controlled ditch into the ocean.
There are a lot of theories about what happened in regards to MH370 and this book lists 4-5 of the potentially most plausible ones: deliberate pilot hijack, catastrophic event that rendered the flight deck unusable, catastrophic event that rendered the crew hypoxic before they could radio for help but after they turned back and hijacking from a third party that was either successful or otherwise, depending on their motive. I think most people have made up their own minds what they think happened – for me, reading everything, watching documentaries on it, etc the one that makes the most sense is the first scenario, a deliberate action by the pilot to put the plane on a course to nowhere, for reasons unknown.
This book is very thorough, very involved and definitely does not hold back where it thinks that investigations and governments failed. In particular, the ATSB (Australian Transportation Safety Bureau) and its repeated failure to consider the fact that the plane might have been in a controlled descent when it finally hit the ocean, which would mean calculations as to where it possibly landed could be off by as much as 100 miles. They’re already looking for a needle in a haystack – discounting information means they could be looking at entirely the wrong haystack. The ATSB seem reluctant to consider such an outcome so as not to offend other nations, particularly Malaysia, in charge of the overall investigation into the crash (Australia was only in charge of the search once it was determined where the plane finally ended up, regionally speaking). This book talks to a lot of experienced pilots, people who have flown Boeing 777s for a living, who understand the mechanics of the machine, how difficult it is to perform the manoeuvre the plane did as it turned, and how it wouldn’t ever be done on autopilot. And investigators who have dealt with catastrophic loss of airplanes in other countries, planes that have out-of-control crashed into the sea and how that debris looks….versus how nothing like that was ever spotted in any part of the Indian Ocean. In one plane that crashed from height into the sea, they recovered over two million pieces of wreckage – the plane basically disintegrated. When wreckage of MH370 finally began turning up as far away as Africa, it was in relatively large portions that contained pieces that were quite intact, definitely more in line of how a plane might break up if put into the ocean in a more controlled manner, rather than simply falling out of the sky when it ran out of fuel. And if that’s true, then it explains why the multiple searches of the Indian Ocean haven’t found a single thing.
MH370 is interesting I think (and scary) because it accomplished something that shouldn’t have been possible – disappearing a Boeing 777. There were opportunities to stop this (and by ‘this’ I mean the vagueness of its final resting place and the ambiguity around the reasons for it) – if Ho Chi Minh City had contacted Kuala Lumpur sooner, if the Thai military had inquired about the plane on their radar that should definitely not have been there, if they hadn’t assumed the plane was still on its heading based on projection the plane should have been hitting that they assumed it was. I think a large portion of Malaysian Airlines expected the plane to magically still land in Beijing on time and that there’d been communications breakdown or something. By the time they figured out it had vanished, it was already thousands of miles from where it should be and with no hope of ever being saved. It may have already been in the water. No one believed that you could actually do this, that you could hijack a plane basically unnoticed and fly it wherever you want in the world and that even now, six years later (on the 8th March) the wreckage would still not be found. As it stands the search is currently not active unless they get some extra information that gives them an idea of where to look but it feels like this is a wreck that should be found. That they shouldn’t stop until they find it because only by finding it can they ever probably truly piece together what happened. It’s one that for the safety of aviation in the future, the answers need to be known.
This is a thoroughly researched piece of what is basically investigative journalism that seeks to examine the thought processes of potential scenarios and also critique the search and rescue efforts as well as the overall investigation itself. There’s definitely a lot of global politics at play here and the author has faced significant backlash from the ATSB (they refuse to talk to him, but have told his employer that he was writing articles for that they’d be happy to talk to other journalists on the same topic). He interviews a lot of really interesting people, knowledgable people who have theories based on that knowledge and their own research. I think basically, everyone is at the moment, guessing. Guessing where the plane ‘probably’ is – but some of those guesses are probably more educated than others. The ATSB based their search area on just one scenario, whilst completely ignoring another one, for the sake of diplomatic relations. But diplomatic relations probably won’t help find the plane. And if I had a loved one on board that plane, I’d want my government to try and exhaust all of the options. And yes, I know the search is hugely expensive. But governments waste money on all types of stuff that doesn’t involve deceased citizens. The most important thing seems to be: find the plane first, get the answers and then….well then deal with whatever fallout that might cause with other countries.
Will they find MH370? I hope so and I hope it’s within my lifetime. But I’m not sure it’ll be anytime soon, there probably needs to be a some sort of technology developed that allows for greater scanning of the ocean floor, so that they can scan larger areas more quickly. But I’d love to have the answers myself, so I can only imagine how desperate those connected to the flight must be to have them. If you are interested in aviation and mysteries, then I’d recommend this as a pretty thorough look at the mechanics of the flight and the aftermath. It does include a more personal touch with some quotes and interviews of Australian relatives left wondering but for me, that definitely did not feel like the focus. I found the lack of transparency from the ATSB definitely to be something I wasn’t aware of before, and actually quite concerning. This is definitely a must read for those interested in the case itself….but if you are looking for a more personal experience, then it’s possible some readers might find this a bit too dense.
***A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for the purpose of an honest review***
There are a lot of theories about what happened in regards to MH370 and this book lists 4-5 of the potentially most plausible ones: deliberate pilot hijack, catastrophic event that rendered the flight deck unusable, catastrophic event that rendered the crew hypoxic before they could radio for help but after they turned back and hijacking from a third party that was either successful or otherwise, depending on their motive. I think most people have made up their own minds what they think happened – for me, reading everything, watching documentaries on it, etc the one that makes the most sense is the first scenario, a deliberate action by the pilot to put the plane on a course to nowhere, for reasons unknown.
This book is very thorough, very involved and definitely does not hold back where it thinks that investigations and governments failed. In particular, the ATSB (Australian Transportation Safety Bureau) and its repeated failure to consider the fact that the plane might have been in a controlled descent when it finally hit the ocean, which would mean calculations as to where it possibly landed could be off by as much as 100 miles. They’re already looking for a needle in a haystack – discounting information means they could be looking at entirely the wrong haystack. The ATSB seem reluctant to consider such an outcome so as not to offend other nations, particularly Malaysia, in charge of the overall investigation into the crash (Australia was only in charge of the search once it was determined where the plane finally ended up, regionally speaking). This book talks to a lot of experienced pilots, people who have flown Boeing 777s for a living, who understand the mechanics of the machine, how difficult it is to perform the manoeuvre the plane did as it turned, and how it wouldn’t ever be done on autopilot. And investigators who have dealt with catastrophic loss of airplanes in other countries, planes that have out-of-control crashed into the sea and how that debris looks….versus how nothing like that was ever spotted in any part of the Indian Ocean. In one plane that crashed from height into the sea, they recovered over two million pieces of wreckage – the plane basically disintegrated. When wreckage of MH370 finally began turning up as far away as Africa, it was in relatively large portions that contained pieces that were quite intact, definitely more in line of how a plane might break up if put into the ocean in a more controlled manner, rather than simply falling out of the sky when it ran out of fuel. And if that’s true, then it explains why the multiple searches of the Indian Ocean haven’t found a single thing.
MH370 is interesting I think (and scary) because it accomplished something that shouldn’t have been possible – disappearing a Boeing 777. There were opportunities to stop this (and by ‘this’ I mean the vagueness of its final resting place and the ambiguity around the reasons for it) – if Ho Chi Minh City had contacted Kuala Lumpur sooner, if the Thai military had inquired about the plane on their radar that should definitely not have been there, if they hadn’t assumed the plane was still on its heading based on projection the plane should have been hitting that they assumed it was. I think a large portion of Malaysian Airlines expected the plane to magically still land in Beijing on time and that there’d been communications breakdown or something. By the time they figured out it had vanished, it was already thousands of miles from where it should be and with no hope of ever being saved. It may have already been in the water. No one believed that you could actually do this, that you could hijack a plane basically unnoticed and fly it wherever you want in the world and that even now, six years later (on the 8th March) the wreckage would still not be found. As it stands the search is currently not active unless they get some extra information that gives them an idea of where to look but it feels like this is a wreck that should be found. That they shouldn’t stop until they find it because only by finding it can they ever probably truly piece together what happened. It’s one that for the safety of aviation in the future, the answers need to be known.
This is a thoroughly researched piece of what is basically investigative journalism that seeks to examine the thought processes of potential scenarios and also critique the search and rescue efforts as well as the overall investigation itself. There’s definitely a lot of global politics at play here and the author has faced significant backlash from the ATSB (they refuse to talk to him, but have told his employer that he was writing articles for that they’d be happy to talk to other journalists on the same topic). He interviews a lot of really interesting people, knowledgable people who have theories based on that knowledge and their own research. I think basically, everyone is at the moment, guessing. Guessing where the plane ‘probably’ is – but some of those guesses are probably more educated than others. The ATSB based their search area on just one scenario, whilst completely ignoring another one, for the sake of diplomatic relations. But diplomatic relations probably won’t help find the plane. And if I had a loved one on board that plane, I’d want my government to try and exhaust all of the options. And yes, I know the search is hugely expensive. But governments waste money on all types of stuff that doesn’t involve deceased citizens. The most important thing seems to be: find the plane first, get the answers and then….well then deal with whatever fallout that might cause with other countries.
Will they find MH370? I hope so and I hope it’s within my lifetime. But I’m not sure it’ll be anytime soon, there probably needs to be a some sort of technology developed that allows for greater scanning of the ocean floor, so that they can scan larger areas more quickly. But I’d love to have the answers myself, so I can only imagine how desperate those connected to the flight must be to have them. If you are interested in aviation and mysteries, then I’d recommend this as a pretty thorough look at the mechanics of the flight and the aftermath. It does include a more personal touch with some quotes and interviews of Australian relatives left wondering but for me, that definitely did not feel like the focus. I found the lack of transparency from the ATSB definitely to be something I wasn’t aware of before, and actually quite concerning. This is definitely a must read for those interested in the case itself….but if you are looking for a more personal experience, then it’s possible some readers might find this a bit too dense.
***A copy of this book was provided by the publisher for the purpose of an honest review***
March 10, 2024
Aviation journalism is so interesting even when it's so often tragic. I found this book to be particularly thoughtful and sensitive to the scope of the tragedy, which is always a good sign: I often find it difficult to stomach long form journalism that smacks as at all voyeuristic. I did think it dragged some of the information out in the name of crafting a longer book, but I thought the central theories were all well-explained (if not all equally believable).
June 20, 2019
It’s a bit unusual for me to read a book like this, but my wife won it in a Facebook competition and dropped it into my lap. I had just finished another book and had a window of opportunity so thought “why not?”. I ended up being reasonably impressed with what I read. It’s well written, informative and technically correct, delving into the unusual aspects of the investigation. If one thing is clear, it’s that there’s definitely a number of things that do not add up, and possibly even a cover up somewhere. This book examines the issues nicely and offers much food for thought. While he can’t yet answer any of the big questions, the author does a fine job and unraveling much of the confusion surrounding the search for MH370. I’m glad that I read it.
February 7, 2023
Living in Perth I still remember the whole saga with the Malaysian Airlines flight disappearance.
What can I say, it was good to refresh my memories about the details of this event…
The book is written very thoroughly, the facts and details seem exceptionally accurate, all theories are very intriguing.
By the way, don’t feel overwhelmed by the large amount of aviation terminology, keep reading - you will see a big picture.
The only reason I am giving this book a 4 and not 5, because in my opinion it is slightly missing something, and is full of facts and not enough descriptions.
What I loved about the book is that there were some interesting unknown to me findings about the ghost flights and Australian submarine disappearance during the WW1.
Also the author linked us to another very interesting read about the MH370 disappearance, which nearly brought my 4 mark up to a 5 :)
What can I say, it was good to refresh my memories about the details of this event…
The book is written very thoroughly, the facts and details seem exceptionally accurate, all theories are very intriguing.
By the way, don’t feel overwhelmed by the large amount of aviation terminology, keep reading - you will see a big picture.
The only reason I am giving this book a 4 and not 5, because in my opinion it is slightly missing something, and is full of facts and not enough descriptions.
What I loved about the book is that there were some interesting unknown to me findings about the ghost flights and Australian submarine disappearance during the WW1.
Also the author linked us to another very interesting read about the MH370 disappearance, which nearly brought my 4 mark up to a 5 :)
November 14, 2020
I think most people outside of southeast Asia and Australia really have no idea about the continued investigation of MH370. I know I didn't, and this is a fascinating way to catch yourself up. It does get a big bogged down with acronyms and technical terminology at times, but that's necessary to really explain the situation, so stick it out. You'll be rewarded with an eye opening look at a true aviation mystery and how it's been shaped by an international political climate.
March 23, 2019
Shocking revelations!! All news sites were generating articles based on this book, and that prompted me to read this book... Hope the plane and the black box shows up some day to clear all confusions.
January 26, 2023
This is a very well written and researched book. As stated on the front of the book; “The mystery. The cover-up. The truth.”
Whilst the book isn’t divided into separate sections it is relatively easy to see where the sections are. The first section sets the scene and explains what happened, at least as far as the limited information the investigators had available to them at the time would allow. This move nicely into the cover-up section which makes up most of the middle of the book. This is then followed by the ‘truth’ section which was really throughout most of the book.
During the reading of this book it became pretty clear that diplomatic relations and politics appeared to have influenced how the ATSB (Australian Transport Safety Bureau) conducted its investigations (not sure why this surprised me to be honest). There were many times where, if the questions the ATSB was asked and it didn’t want to answer them, it said that that was the responsibility of the Malaysian govt. It seemed to be a catch all answer in the end. At one point Ean Higgins was silenced and even banned to be spoken to, because he was asking for documentation by applying for Freedom of Information requests, no doubt because he was getting too close the truth.
The ATSB ignored professional pilots who all expressed their belief that the only way this incident made sense, indeed ticked all the boxes, was if the pilot deliberately hijacked and crashed the plane himself.
There was a mention in the book of searching in the high probability areas which made me ask the question ‘what about the low probability areas?’ I’m reminded of Sherlock Holmes saying: “When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
Well worth the read.
Whilst the book isn’t divided into separate sections it is relatively easy to see where the sections are. The first section sets the scene and explains what happened, at least as far as the limited information the investigators had available to them at the time would allow. This move nicely into the cover-up section which makes up most of the middle of the book. This is then followed by the ‘truth’ section which was really throughout most of the book.
During the reading of this book it became pretty clear that diplomatic relations and politics appeared to have influenced how the ATSB (Australian Transport Safety Bureau) conducted its investigations (not sure why this surprised me to be honest). There were many times where, if the questions the ATSB was asked and it didn’t want to answer them, it said that that was the responsibility of the Malaysian govt. It seemed to be a catch all answer in the end. At one point Ean Higgins was silenced and even banned to be spoken to, because he was asking for documentation by applying for Freedom of Information requests, no doubt because he was getting too close the truth.
The ATSB ignored professional pilots who all expressed their belief that the only way this incident made sense, indeed ticked all the boxes, was if the pilot deliberately hijacked and crashed the plane himself.
There was a mention in the book of searching in the high probability areas which made me ask the question ‘what about the low probability areas?’ I’m reminded of Sherlock Holmes saying: “When you have eliminated all which is impossible, then whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.”
Well worth the read.
May 23, 2019
'The Hunt for MH370' is released as we reach the five year anniversary of the missing aircraft. Five long years for loved ones of those missing being trapped in indefinite anguish and grief.
What happened to the 239 souls on board? Why hasn't the aircraft ever been found, despite a considerable recovery effort?
Award winning journalist and aviation enthusiast Ean Higgins follows the investigational mystery in his new book.
Higgins systematically proposes a series of well regarded theories to try to discover what happened to MH370- the greatest enigma in aviation history.
The families of the six Australians aboard the aircraft share their struggle with the search effort and the secrecy surrounding the examination.
'The Hunt for MH370' gives voice to the raw emotional toll it has taken on these family members who said goodbye on any ordinary day to never see their loved ones again. It reveals the heart-wrenching grief and retraumatisation of never receiving closure or being able to bring their loved ones home.
What happened to the 239 souls on board? Why hasn't the aircraft ever been found, despite a considerable recovery effort?
Award winning journalist and aviation enthusiast Ean Higgins follows the investigational mystery in his new book.
Higgins systematically proposes a series of well regarded theories to try to discover what happened to MH370- the greatest enigma in aviation history.
The families of the six Australians aboard the aircraft share their struggle with the search effort and the secrecy surrounding the examination.
'The Hunt for MH370' gives voice to the raw emotional toll it has taken on these family members who said goodbye on any ordinary day to never see their loved ones again. It reveals the heart-wrenching grief and retraumatisation of never receiving closure or being able to bring their loved ones home.
January 20, 2021
I’ll always remember when MH370 disappeared because I had a flight scheduled for the same day. One of those events I clearly recall where I was when I learned about it. Written by a prominent journalist that was and still is on the front lines of this story, you couldn’t ask for a better perspective. I’d seen a few documentaries and TV specials before this but nothing compares to the level of detail put forth in this book. All the mainstream theories (and a couple I hadn’t heard) are outlined while the facts of every major investigation are explained in terms layman can understand. Going in I tended to agree with the rogue pilot theory and that it was a murder suicide, by the conclusion I am as certain as I can be that this was the case. No theory is completely satisfactory without discovering the remains of the aircraft, but it’s the theory that requires the fewest assumptions and/or leaps in logic.
As disheartening as the search has been, I’m confident the plane will someday be found and closure will come to the families of the victims.
As disheartening as the search has been, I’m confident the plane will someday be found and closure will come to the families of the victims.
January 12, 2021
It’s rare that I’d give an aviation book 5 stars, so I thought I better explain my reasoning. When MH370 disappeared over the Indian Ocean, I was working as a journalist in Brazil, and was assigned to trawl through the hundreds of pages of Reuters footage in order to put together comprehensive news reports. Thus began a keen interest in this story, and as I’ve been following it ever since, I was expecting this book to be good. Not this good, though! Ean Higgins has put together a spectacular piece of investigative journalism, explaining complex aviation terms and what must have been years of thorough research in the most informative and fascinating ways. If you’ve also been following the MH370 mystery, or if you find air crash investigations interesting, then you’ll find this book very engaging.
May 19, 2019
As an ex pilot, I found this a fascinating summary of the investigations into the loss of MH370. While I had heard about the ATSB investigation, I had not heard of its lack of transparency and, it would seem, logic in the face of many experts. It would genuinely appear that one of the pilots, likely the Chief Pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah, hijacked his own flight and ditched the 777 in the southern Indian Ocean. When will it be found I wonder and what will it say.
March 2, 2020
Really interesting read, although I would have preferred more depth to the five theories and less on the journo v ATSB issue. The argument was valid but the sheer volume of the anti-ATSB sentiment got a little annoying the more I read. Regardless, would recommend to others.
May 17, 2022
This was a great retelling. I didn’t know most of the information within this book; it was very interesting. My only criticism is that at times it was very dense.
I also liked the discussion regarding freedom of information - lots of great insights into being a journalist in Australia.
I also liked the discussion regarding freedom of information - lots of great insights into being a journalist in Australia.
March 25, 2024
Was watching a doco about MH370 & the author was interviewed and he mentioned his book. At the end of the doco it was mentioned that he has disappeared in 2020. So now we have two mysteries. Where’s the plane? And where is Ean Higgins?!?
Read
October 17, 2024Definitely an interesting insight into the theories and search surrounding MH370 but after around the midway point bro was just trying to fill out the book it definitely started getting pretty repetitive and full of boring details
June 24, 2019
A well written and well researched book with many options ,but still unanswered questions.
The writer intends to write more when the aircraft is finally discovered....which it will
someday
The writer intends to write more when the aircraft is finally discovered....which it will
someday
October 8, 2019
A well written detailed account of the missing flight. A gripping read.
December 23, 2019
3.5 stars
Thoroughly researched, which unfortunately means it was rather repetitive. I listened to the audio version.
Thoroughly researched, which unfortunately means it was rather repetitive. I listened to the audio version.
May 30, 2021
i am a Malaysian and I love the details in this book. Now I know a lot of fact about MH370. Hope one day it can be found.
October 22, 2022
An exhaustively detailed book about the search for mh370. Unfortunately the author spent a good 1/3 of the book criticizing the ATSB and it got fairly boring and tedious. The same dead horse was beaten repeatedly page after page.
It's an interesting read for air crash investigations buffs, but should've been shorter.
It's an interesting read for air crash investigations buffs, but should've been shorter.
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews