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Malaysian plane probe spotlights cockpit crew

– ‘ Contradictory information’ –

Two-thirds of the passengers on board the flight were Chinese, and state media in China attacked Malaysia anew on Monday for its handling of the crisis.

“The contradictory and piecemeal information Malaysia Airlines and its government have provided has made search efforts difficult and the entire incident even more mysterious,” the China Daily newspaper wrote in an editorial.

“What else is known that has not been shared with the world?” it asked.

For relatives of those on board, the indications that the plane was taken over in some way provides a slim hope that it might have landed undetected somewhere and that those on board are still alive.

“If they found the wreckage of the plane then that would be finalised because there’s no hope,” said Australian David Lawton, whose brother was on the plane.

“But while you’ve got hope, you’ve got worries too. Because if they’re alive, are they being treated well, or what’s happening?” he told Fairfax media.

The number of countries involved in the physical search for the jet has nearly doubled to 25, after satellite and military radar data projected two dauntingly large and contrasting corridors the plane might have flown through, to the north and south.

“We are now looking at large tracts of land, crossing 11 countries, as well as deep and remote oceans,” said Hishammuddin Hussein, Malaysia’s minister of both transport and defence.

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The northern corridor stretches in an arc over south and central Asia, while the other extends deep into the southern Indian Ocean towards Australia.

Prime Minister Tony Abbott said Monday that Australia would, at Malaysia’s behest, take responsibility for the “southern vector” of the search area.

“All of our agencies that could possibly help in this area are scouring their data to see if there’s anything that they can add to the understanding of this mystery,” Abbot told reporters.

The China Maritime Search and Rescue Centre has asked Chinese merchant ships in the Indian Ocean, Bay of Bengal and the waters to the west of Australia to provide assistance.

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