Vietnamese air force planes find oil slicks as search for missing jet continues
AP Photo/Lai Seng Sin
The search continues for a Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 that disappeared off radar screens less than an hour after it took off from Kuala Lumpur on Saturday morning.
Bound for Beijing, the plane has 227 passengers and 12 crew members aboard. Malaysia Airlines said the pilot, Zaharie Ahmad Shah, has flown more than 18,000 hours for the airline since 1981. Neither he nor the first officer sent a distress signal, suggesting any problems occurred very quickly and perhaps did not leave time to make such a call.
Malaysia, Singapore and Vietnam are coordinating on the search for the missing jet. Vietnamese air force planes discovered oil slicks that could be from a crashed jetliner's fuel tanks, but there is no confirmation they're the product of the missing plane.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
In Kuala Lumpur and Beijing, families of the plane’s passengers await news, pictured below. --Sarah Eberspacher
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Sarah Eberspacher is an associate editor at TheWeek.com. She has previously worked as a sports reporter at The Livingston County Daily Press & Argus and The Arizona Republic. She graduated from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism.
-
The small Caribbean island courting crypto billionsUnder the Radar Crypto mogul Olivier Janssens plans to create a libertarian utopia on Nevis
-
Political cartoons for December 21Cartoons Sunday’s political cartoons include Christmas movies, AI sermons, and more
-
A luxury walking tour in Western AustraliaThe Week Recommends Walk through an ‘ancient forest’ and listen to the ‘gentle hushing’ of the upper canopy
-
British warship repels 'largest Houthi attack to date' in the Red SeaSpeed read Western allies warn of military response to Iranian-backed Yemeni rebels if attacks on ships continue
-
Houthi rebels claim Red Sea ship attacksspeed read Iran-backed Yemeni group vows to escalate aggression towards Israel-linked vessels in revenge for Gaza war
-
Israel plans next phase of Gaza war as first hostages releasedSpeed read After four-day ceasefire 'we will not stop' until destruction of Hamas, says Israel
-
Mob storms Russian airport 'looking for Jews'Speed Read Plane from Israel surrounded by rioters chanting antisemitic slogans after landing in Russia's Dagestan region
-
Tuberville's military promotions block is upending lives, combat readiness, 3 military branch chiefs saySpeed Read
-
Ukraine's counteroffensive is making incremental gains. Does it matter in the broader war?Speed Read
-
US commissions first-ever Navy ship in a foreign portSpeed Read
-
British spy chief, Wagner video suggest Prigozhin is alive and freely 'floating around'Speed Read
