Malaysia not disclosing all details: Indian officials

KOLKATA: Nearly a week after officially joining the search for Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370 that went missing with 239 people on board since March 8, India has expressed displeasure over claims by a section of Malaysian officials that the aircraft could have used runways at the Andaman and Nicobar Islands to land. The Andaman and Nicobar Command (ANC) had confirmed a couple of days earlier that there is no evidence of an air crash on or near any of the islands in the archipelago.

"We had also made it clear that the aircraft couldn't have entered Indian airspace without being detected. Today, we have come across reports that suggest that there are runways in the Andamans where the large Boeing 777-200 ER could have landed. Just because there are runways in the Andamans that are large enough to accommodate it doesn't mean it could have landed in any of those. Both runways are considered extremely sensitive and are well protected," an official said.

Of the runways mentioned are the ones at Car Nicobar and Port Blair. Car Nicobar is a full-fledged air base of the Indian Air Force. The IAF operates assets from this base routinely and any aircraft, military of civil, approaching it without necessary clearance would have been challenged. The only other option is the runway at Veer Savarkar International Airport at Port Blair. This is also a very secure establishment as it shares airside facilities with the INS Utkrosh, a naval air station of the Indian Navy. The navy operates surveillance and reconnaissance flights from here.

"There has been an effort to indicate that these runways could have been used as they are on islands that are at a distance from the mainland. People should understand the strategic importance of the Andamans for India. It is preposterous to even consider that an unscheduled flight could have landed at a runway there. We have gone through all data but there is no indication that any suspicious aircraft passed through the area on that date," the official added.

The ANC is aware of the threats that the archipelago face. During a media interaction during Milan 2014, Air Marshal P K Roy, commander in chief, ANC, had indicated that a terror strike on the islands can't be ruled out and overall level of security enhancement has been done. Under the circumstances, it isn't likely that the missing airliner even flew at a low height over the islands and remained undetected.

"We believe that the Malaysians are keeping a lot of information very close to their chests. This is hampering search operations as well. In today's world, we don't think its too possible for an aircraft without necessary clearance to fly over several countries and reach a central Asian country as is being indicated by authorities in Malaysia," another official said.

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