Flight MH370 Mystery: France To Re-Examine Satellite Data Amid Cover-Up Claims

France has reopened its investigation into the disappearance of Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 after Malaysia's long-awaited report failed to explain what happened to the jetliner. The 449-page report that was released on July 30 sparked condemnation from the families of those on board the jet as they accused the Malaysian government of a massive cover-up.

While the French government has not confirmed the latest investigation, French newspaper Le Parisien reported that investigators are planning to verify data from Inmarsat — the British operator of a global satellite network — which tracked the aircraft’s pings to the southern Indian Ocean off Western Australia, where the plane is believed to have crashed. Investigators are also planning to "verify the veracity and especially the authenticity of all the technical data transmitted."

The Gendarmerie of Air Transport (GTA), which launched its own probe into the mysterious disappearance, was allowed to conduct its own investigations due to the presence of four French passengers on board the flight. MH370 went missing on March 8, 2014, with 239 people on board while on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

Amid suspicion over a cover-up by Malaysia into the disappearance of the plane, relatives of those on board the jet issued a statement urging the government to release all data, including military radar data, for review and analysis by independent experts. Voice 370, a group who claim to speak for the next-of-kin of those on board Flight MH370, raised concerns about Malaysia's handling of the investigation.

"Even though Voice 370 acknowledges the work of the MH370 Annexe 13 Safety Investigation team, the MH370 family members are frustrated that the Report was poorly framed that it became open to opportunistic interpretations," a Voice 370 statement said.

Voice 370 also echoed France's doubts over the satellite data, writing: “Boeing, for example, that has been silent for the last 4.5 years wasted no time in absolving themselves of blame despite the fact that (the Malaysian) report specifically mentions that a lack of evidence precluded the investigation from definitely eliminating any possibility... Furthermore, the French authority mentions repeatedly in their report that their investigations on the flaperon had been hampered by an absence of data from Boeing.”

The report released by Malaysia said the investigation team was unable to determine what happened to the jet. The report said Flight MH370 deviated from its path not because of anomalies in the mechanical system or under autopilot but under manual control. Families of the victims claimed Malaysia was particularly critical of the decision to rule out a sophisticated murder-suicide plot by the Captain Zaharie Shah.

However, investigators said they cannot rule out the possibility of hijacking as the plane deliberately turned around before disappearing.

Azharuddin Abdul Rahman, director-general of the Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation, resigned after investigators found numerous lapses by air traffic controllers in both Malaysia and Vietnam. These included failing to initiate "emergency phases" as required after the Boeing 777-200 vanished from radar displays.

Malaysia's Transport Minister Anthony Loke insisted last week that "the aspiration to locate MH370 has not been abandoned" and vowed to "take action" against any misconduct committed.

However, the mystery behind the plane's disappearance continues despite several efforts to locate the plane. A multimillion-dollar search for the missing plane yielded no concrete clues as to the plane's whereabouts. The biggest lead in the investigation came when a plane flaperon was found by villagers on Réunion Island. Investigators said in the report that 27 pieces of wreckage are believed to be from MH370, though only three have been confirmed as parts belonging to that plane. The items of debris have been found as far north as the eastern coast of Tanzania and as far south as eastern coast of South Africa.