The Mystery of MH370: Numerous Claims of Being Found on Google Maps

Since MH370 went missing, many people have claimed to have discovered wreckage of the plane on Google Maps. 

On March 8, 2014, Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing disappeared, taking with it all 227 passengers and 12 crew members.

The search for MH370, considered the most extensive in aviation history, did not find the plane and sparked numerous conspiracy theories about the missing aircraft.

Malaysia is currently pushing for a new search for MH370, bringing hope to the relatives of those on board.

On the 10th anniversary of MH370's disappearance, Metro.co.uk reviews the claims made by amateur detectives about finding MH370 on Google Maps.

March 2014

Just days after MH370 went missing, amateur detectives began searching for the missing plane using Google Maps.

Google had to urge people not to use its software to try and locate the missing plane after many users contacted The Malaysia Star to report that they had "found" the aircraft.

A Google Malaysia spokesperson had to remind everyone that the images on Google Maps are not real-time satellite images and could have been taken weeks or even months before appearing online.

2016

Amateur investigator Ian Wilson claimed to have found MH370 wreckage in 2016, and the image remained visible on Google Earth for three years after.

He asserted that the plane's wreckage was deep in the Cambodian jungle, about 100 km northwest of Phnom Penh.

March 2016

Scott C Waring, a self-proclaimed UFO hunter, stated that he might have accidentally found MH370 wreckage while searching for UFOs around the Cape of Good Hope, South Africa.

Scott mentioned that the image on Google Earth was taken in July 2015, while MH370 disappeared in March 2014. Therefore, he suggested that due to strong currents, the MH370 wreckage might have drifted in that direction.

March 2018

Peter McMahon, an Australian mechanical engineer who had worked in accident investigations for over 25 years, believed he had discovered the remains of MH370 in the Indian Ocean.

Using both Google Maps and NASA images, he concluded that the plane had crashed 16 km south of Round Island, near Mauritius. This area had not been part of the previous search efforts for MH370.

August 2018

An anonymous conspiracy theorist claimed to have found MH370 off the coast of Indonesia.

This person conducted a search on Google Earth of the waters off Padang, about an hour's flight from where MH370 took off from Kuala Lumpur.

However, the individual later admitted that it might just be an image of a plane flying over the water.

October 2018

Geologist John Guo believed he had found MH370 wreckage after identifying a 600m-long patch of fallen trees leading to the location of an aircraft in satellite view on Google Map. According to John Guo, the area where MH370 crashed was about 45m wide.

This theory seemed to support Ian Wilson's 2016 claim that MH370 had crashed in the Cambodian jungle.

Where were the actual MH370 wreckages found?

Several pieces of wreckage have washed up on shores around the Indian Ocean, with serial numbers and other identifying features confirming they belonged to MH370, Metro noted.

The first confirmed debris was found on a beach on Réunion Island in July 2015. This piece was identified as a flaperon from MH370.

A few months later, in December 2015, a meter-long piece of metal was found in Xai Xai, Mozambique.

In February 2016, another piece was found washed up in Vilankulo, Mozambique.

A month later, a Rolls-Royce engine cowling was found in Mossel Bay, South Africa, and a piece of the main cabin interior was found on Rodrigues Island in Mauritius.

In June 2016, a large wing fragment was found on Pemba Island in Zanzibar. Meanwhile, in September 2016, debris washed up in Sainte-Luce, Madagascar, was found but not confirmed to be from MH370.