Breaking News: #MH370 Malaysia Airlines missing flight : Updated: 1820/14March2014

#PrayForMH370 Live Updates: Data shows plane was heading to Andaman Islands

UPDATE [6.00pm]: The press conference has just ended. Here are some key highlights:

• The authorities have investigated two oil slicks at the South China Sea two days ago. One oil slick has a tiny hint of jet fuel, but they can't confirm it belongs to MH370. No debris was found
• Acting Transport Minister, Hishammuddin Hussein, denied reports that MH370 kept flying after it lost contact, with Rolls Royce and Boeing confirming that they have not received any flight data.
• Authorities are still unable to confirm that the plane made a turn-back: "Though there is information, it’s not 100 per cent that it’s MH370. That has not changed.”
• The UK investigation team and representatives from Roll Royce will be arriving tonight to assist investigations.
• Authorities can't confirm if transponder was deliberately switched off: “There’s no confirmation on the signal. We are still investigating the possibility,” says Hishammuddin.
• Hishamuddin has continued to deny that the police have searched the houses of Malaysia Airlines crew.
• On extending their search area to the Indian Ocean, Hishamuddin said: "Together with our international partners, we are pushing further east into the South China Sea and further into the Indian Ocean."
• Hishamuddin also confirmed that they are working very closely with the U.S. team: "They indicated they were studying the possibility of satellite communication. Whatever they have and will share with us."

UPDATE [4.50pm]: Sources close to the ongoing investigation revealed that military radar-tracking evidence suggests that the missing jetliner was deliberately flown towards the Andaman Islands. Full story here.

UPDATE [3.47pm]: The best information about the missing flight MH370 is probably in the hands of American officials who are in Malaysia assisting the investigation but they are keeping mum, the New York Times reported. Full story.

UPDATE [1.56pm]: Several family members of Chinese passengers on board a missing Malaysian airliner have requested to speak directly with Malaysian leaders via teleconference. Story here.

UPDATE [12.13pm]: The US believes that the shutdown of two communications systems on missing flight MH370 could have been deliberate. Full story.

UPDATE [10.28am] : A crisis management expert has pointed to rumours and speculation from social media as a hindrance for Malaysian authorities investigating the disappearance of flight MH370. Read it here.

UPDATE [8:17am]:  US officials believe that the shutdown of two communication systems happened separately on missing MH370. One source revealed, it is an indication that the plane did not come out of the sky because of a catastrophic failure. Another source said that the data reporting system and transponder was shut down at 1.07am and 1.21am, respectively.

UPDATE [5.05am]: US officials revealed that flight MH370 continued to "ping" a satellite for four hours after it dropped off of the radar. The officials stated that the number of pings would indicate how long the plane stayed aloft. Full story here.

UPDATE [2:04am]: Communications satellites picked up faint electronic pulses ("pings") from MH370 after it went missing on Saturday, but the signals gave no indication about where the stray jet was heading nor its technical condition. Full story here.

A new search area may be opened in the Indian Ocean, says the White House. "We are consulting with international partners about the appropriate assets to deploy." Full story here.

UPDATE [1.30am]: U.S. officials have an "indication" that the missing jetliner may have crashed in the Indian Ocean. Naval ship USS Kidd was dispatched to the area to begin searching in the next 24 hours. Full story here.

Source: Yahoo News