. >> you knew captain shah. some people point a finger at him. >> he was an excellent pilot. >> for the first time, the captain's youngest son speaking out, addressing those who call his father a political fanatic or a hijacker. this morning's search called off. >> shutting down and packing it up. >> the wicked weather. >> zero visibility means nothing. couldn't see anything out the windows. >> may not be able to see the wingtips of the aircraft. >> grounding all flights as malaysia airlines speaks to families. the full-page ad. words of support. deeply saddened. sincerence condolences. will never be forgotten. a special edition of "newsroom" starts now. >>> good morning. i'm carol costello. developing news this morning. new satellite images. this picture taken on march 24th. it shows a debris field with 300 objects. couple that picture with the next two images. they were taken by australia on march 16th. the fourth image was taken on the 18th. the chinese satellite snapped an unknown object. and this past sunda

he talked about a young cadet that he knew, captain shah. listen. you knew captain shah. some people point a finger at him. >> he's an excellent pilot. and i think and also an excellent gentleman. i think they're going the wrong way pointing finger at him. >> you also knew the co-pilot. what can you say about him? >> his father learned the koran by heart, so he also learned the koran by heart. he's a good muslim. and i know that captain was a good muslim. >> reporter: so, he knew both of the pilots, the pilot and the co-pilot. he fears for what they face. he says people taking shots at them are shooting at the wrong trees. he says that he really hopes they find that flight data recorder, because without it, you don't have any solid evidence. your reputation, your life, everything you lived for as a pilot in the aviation industry is gone. and he doesn't want to see that happen to captain shah and his co-pilot. back to you, poppy. >> yeah, and you know, we just have to remember, jim, the families of both the captain and the co-pilot, just like the families of all of the vic

one described shah quote, as ideal pilot. neighbors of hamid said the 27-year-old first officer was friendly and well mannered and seldom socialized within the community. investigators are focusing on both men, especially shah. for no other reason, he was in charge in the cockpit. >> they are interested in his state of his marriage, his views of malaysian airlines which he was unhappy with what he perceived as mismanagement and corruption. they are looking at his views of his son. he was unhappy with his son for recent unemployment. >> reporter: sources have not confirmed those issues with cnn and interviews with shah's family and home and forensic operations of his hard drive have not explained anything of the disappearance. a lack of evidence indicating pre-mmeditation doesn't rule ou one pilot could have snapped in the cockpit. >> it doesn't mean that individual did not have an episode that led them to do something that they would not normally otherwise do. that happens all the time unfortunately. >> reporter: we want to s

while shah posted frequently to youtube and facebook, less is known about shah's co-pilot who had just finished his training on the 777 and was on his first flight in the cockpit unsupervised on the jumbo jet. the co-pilot was also engaged to his flight school sweetheart. while there is no concrete proof, evidence at this point, the pilots deliberately sabotaged that plane, examining them is still a top priority for investigators. but as one of my sources said i don't think there is any prev l prevailing theory right now. there are counterarguments to every theory. the sense i get from talking to sources is people are still baffled by the plane's di appearance. >> they certainly are, pam. thanks. our aviation analyst, the former 777 pilot mark weis and cnn aviation analyst peter goulds, former ntsb managing director and senior law enforcement analyst, former fbi assistant director tom fuentes. so, we're going to be speaking shortly with the world editor from "usa today" on their reporting why they have their sources with malaysian police suggesting that the pilot, not the co-pilot, the

. >> that was the guy shah, right? the pilot shah? >> we don't know who signed off. that's what i'm curious about. >> the malaysians know but they haven't given it out yet, right? >> correct. >> there were two pilots in the cockpit, right, two? >> right. >> all right. so, this guy shah and then he had a guy next to him, a younger guy, his name escapes me at the moment, there it is, okay. so hamid. shah and hamid are there. the pilot is doing something or whoever that was. if the co-pilot did it but it doesn't look like they are in it together to me. it looks like one guy is doing the mischief and the other guy is probably dead or unconscious. again, that's conjecture but there doesn't seem to be any kind of strife there or you would have heard it, some guy would have grabbed the mike and said hey, this is going crazy. so we have to do this like a sherlock holmes thing. >> right. >> you have to deduce what happened. now, this guy shah, first of all, i didn't believe aliens took the plane as another network reported and discussed that aliens might have taken it you are

she was the first one to report these suspicions of captain shah front and center.lso with us avenuiation correspondent richard quest and michael schmidt of the "new york times." mya, you can't tell me who your source is but you says it's a malaysian law enforcement source, somebody you've worked with a lot in the past who's given you good information in the past whose information you have trusted in past who doesn't really go beyond what he or she knows. beyond that, what exactly is your source telling you about ma malaysian authorities or at least the people that your source is working with now believe about the pilot? >> well, beyond what i have said in "usa today" there's nothing much that i'm getting out of him at this point in time. except that he's a well-placed source. i have worked with him for many years now. he's a senior-ranking officer in the special branch and elite squad. and he knows exactly what he's doing. so his information clearly suggests that the pilot was responsible for deliberately diverting the plane. that is what i went with when i reporte

listen. >> you knew captain shah. some people point a finger at him. >> he is an excellent pilot, and i think also an excellent captain. i think going the wrong way, they are pointing finger at him. >> reporter: you also knew the co-pilot. what can you say about him? >> his father learned the koran by heart, so he also learned the koran by heart. he's a good muslim. and i know that captain is a good muslim. >> reporter: mr. aziz had outmost confidence in both of the pilots and their integrity, and he says clearing their names is not going to be easy until and unless that flight data recorder is recovered and unravels the mystery of flight 370. back to you. >> so, we can assume, jim, we're talking about now multiple investigations, that everything is still on the table here. i mean, they are still trying to figure out was this human intervention, was this some sort of catastrophic mechanical failure. they're still trying to figure out what happened here. >> reporter: right. you know, they've cleared the passenger list.

he wanted to make it as close to real as it could be. >> this man sold shah some of the parts he usedmulator. he tells cnn that the 53-year-old father was so interested in making the simulator feel real he wanted a robotic seat like the one seen here that would mimic what it feels like in a cockpit. he says he doesn't believe shah could have been involved. >> he was a down-to-earth guy even if he was flying, he's a pilot. i wouldn't think that he would go that far, no, to turn a plane around and fly for hours just to do something stupid. >> reporter: overnight, those who knew shah and his co-pilot fariq hamid said both men lived ordinary lives and an acquaintance says he was patient and efficient and far from a political fanatic. neighbors of hamid said the 27-year-old first officer was friendly and well-mannered and seldom socialized within the community. still, sources say investigators are focusing on both men, especially shah, if for no other reason that he was in charge in the cockpit. >> they are interested in the state of his marriage, his views of malaysian airlines which he a

captain shah's daughter was reportedly a student studying in melbourne, australia. the family home was here in a gated community in malaysia, but a source close to the family says his wife routinely stayed somewhere else when he was flying. shah was a public supporter of the malaysia opposition party leader and attended pro-democracy rallies. in his free time he posted videos like this one online showing him in front of his home flight simulator talking not about his job but about his interest in home improvement projects. less is known about shah's co-pilot fariq hamid. he was engaged to his high school sweetheart. after finishing his training of the 777, he was on his first flight in the cockpit unsupervised in the jumbo jet. pamela brown, cnn, washington. >> the mystery continues but we'll wait and see if these planes come back with anything in this new region. >>> well, the crisis in ukraine is far from over. the u.n., of course, condemns russia's annexation of crimea. >> but there is a big question in the region -- are russian troops preparing to invade eastern

. >> hours earlier, first officer hamid and captain zaharie ahmad shah passed through security at the airport. >> they're there early and they're going to talk to the airline dispatcher. >> miles o'brien is an aviation expert for cnn. >> they'll talk about the route. they'll talk about the winds aloft. they'll talk about turbulence. and with that all in mind, they will come to an agreement on how much fuel to load onboard an airplane. >> hamid and shah load enough fuel to get to beijing plus 45 minutes to spare. hours later, philip wood, paul weeks and 225 other passengers arrive for the flight. bags checked. boarding passes printed. among them, a group of chinese painters and calligraphers returning from an exhibit of their work. a family heading back from vacation with their toddler. two iranian men traveling on fake passports. passengers flying for business. and pleasure. as well as the flight crew. in the cockpit, the captain and first officer make their final preparations. >> okay. oxygen. check. instruments. check. >> in a 777 simulator, commercial pilot mitchell casado shows cn

you knew captain shah. some people point a finger at him. >> he's an excellent pilot. and i think and also an excellent gentleman. i think they're going the wrong way pointing finger at him. >> you also knew the co-pilot. what can you say about him? >> his father learned the koran by heart, so he also learned the koran by heart. he's a good muslim. and i know that the captain is a good muslim. >> reporter: now, the co-pilot was actually from mr. aziz's hometown. that's how he knew his father. so, they were a little bit better known, at least with the family. at the same time, you know there was another allegation at "usa today" that said that captain shah had attended the opposition leader's sentencing just hours before that flight started. i just talked to an opposition leader who's in that party, the people's justice party, and he says there was a lot of people there, it was a crush of people, but he says i'm quite sure that captain shah was not there. so, a couple of pushbacks against this story. >> right. >> a little bit of politics involved in it all. i think what

zaharie shah was in a bad s >> a fellow pilot says the captain of the missing malaysian airliner was upset and may have taken it on the last joyride, zaharie ahmad shah was in a bad state of mind after learning his wife was leaving him. according to a long time associate. and he was having relationship problems with a second woman. the friend said zaharie ahmad shah was probably in no condition to fly. >>> images that a french satellite took three days ago are key to the search. they are showing more than 100 object ins the southern indian ocean. it's the area where investigators believe the boeing 777 and the passengers and crew were lost. >>> we learned a few hours ago, pg&e is putting a plan on hold to cut down some trees >> reporter: there has been an uproar on removing trees including petitions and the threat of legal actions. pg&e's $500 million pipeline pathway's project meant cutting 739 trees in walnut creek alone. but it seems they are a little aggressive. from eucalpytus, oak, in trails, in backyards, seven east bay cities from danville to dublin were moving the trees to k

captain shah's daughter was a student studying in melbourne, australia.amily home was here in a gated community. but his wife routinely stayed somewhere else when he was flying. shah was a spublic supporter of pro democracy rallies and in his free time he posted videos like this one online. showing him in front of his home flight simulator, talking not about his job but about his interests in home improvement projects. less is known about shah's co-pilot, fariq hamid. he was engaged to his high school sweetheart. he was on his first flight in the cockpit unsupervised on the jumbo jet. and the fbi is expected to hand over analysis of the hard drive soon, evidence that is pulled from it could provide clues or leads for officials to follow up on and that could end up being important in this investigation. but as of now, we are reiterating, no smoking gun has been found. these pilots are victims until proven otherwise. jim? >> do we have unrealistic expectations about how quickly they would come to some working theory here? this could be a long plotting and s

. >> reporter: police have visited the homes of zaharie shah and fariq hamid. investigators have dismantled the sophisticated flight simulator from captain shah's home, searching for any evidence he might have practiced for a flight diversion. >> we had to dismantle it from the room and had to assemble it at our office. and we are getting experts to look at it now. >> reporter: one friend of captain shah's is quoted as saying he is not a terrorist. meanwhile, the indian navy is pulling back, suspended its search, though the "uss kidd" destroyer continues searching a massive body of water along with anti-submarine aircraft from the bay of bengal to malaysia. >> just to give you some context as to the size of that area, if you superimposed a picture of the united states in this area between india and malaysia, it would almost be like looking for one person somewhere between new york and california. >> reporter: but ten days since flight 370 disappeared, veteran investigators now say it's possible the plane and its passengers may never be found. >> it may be that

return the shah to iran.r the next 14 months rosen says the captors abused them physically and emotionally. >> they come into your cell at night and put you against the wall. put a gun against your neck and say, we could kill you. and then walk right out. >> my worst day is when they put me up against the wall, stripped nude, with three rifles. >> the captors forced the hostages to say things on camera that make it seem they're sympathetic to the students' cause. >> i know they keep telling us they want the shah to return to iran and we'll be released. >> on multiple occasions the iranian students release staged videos of hostages, including barry rosen, shown here, being examined by doctors, all prop began to to convince the west they're treating them humanely. >> there were times that they had some people coming in and checking on our health. sure enough, they use that videotape that they brought the weights we had at the embassy from the weight room. they knew they needed us healthy to be able to negotiate

shah, the pilot. he is anwar's son's wife's mother's father's brother's son. does that sound right?>> that's a bit too complex. but my daughter-in-law told me that he is a family member, not too close, but -- she calls him uncle. which is quite common here. but i know him basically -- as a party activist. >> reporter: do you think that he was a fanatic? >> certainly is not. i mean, he supports our coalition. he supports a democratic reform. he's against any form of extremism. we take a very strong position in clamoring for change through constitutional and democratic means. although the electoral process is fraudulent. >> reporter: so he also said that the pilot was not in the court when his case was being adjudicated. this case he's been talking about, he has been sentenced back to jail, a target of the government because he's the main opposition threat to the government. so he is saying the pilot was not in court at that time. he also said something really interesting. that the malaysian government should have been able to track this flight with no trouble whatsoever. he said when

what police know is his partner fired on the car when it began to back up toward officer shah. the bullet to shah's shoulder may have come from his partner. >> that is still under investigation. >> reporter: ruano has been arrested for being a convicted felon in position of ammunition, speeding, and evading police. the officer is out of surgery and recovering. in san francisco, can kerman, kron4new . >> the take con down of the suspect was caught on video. >> reporter: the cameras were rolling. you see the suspect rolling into frame. another angle shows bystanders with hands in the air as chp cautionly approaches the vehicle. look closely, you can see surrendering hands then officers move in. a woman is put in restraints. the driver is pulled from behind the wheel and thrown to the ground. here is the first womb you see in hand cost handcuffs. he now faced multiple felonies. >> reporter: the chp had thrown out a spike strip. by the time the car pulled into the gas station it disintegrated an hour after take-off from kuala lampur early saturday with three americans. today -- vie

. >> reporter: overnight, the 53-year-old zaharie shah's family broke its silence. shah's 26-year-old son saying that he does not believe his father crashed the plane intentionally. ahmad shah zaharie said "i've read everything online but i've ignored all the speculation. i know my father better." >> he's an lent pilot. and i think an excellent captain. i think going the wrong way pointing a finger at him. >> reporter: you also knew the co-pilot. what can you say about him? >> he's smart. he learned the koran by heart. he's a good muslim. and i know that captain is a good muslim. >> and the fbi will send over the hard drive to the malaysians soon. it could provide leads to follow up on and that could end up being important in this investigation but as for now, these pilots are victims until proven otherwise. wolf. >> pamela brown, thank you. let's bring in mike weiss, peter goelz, and tom fuentes. peter, what do you make of all of these reports? five nations now providing satellite imagery of possible debris but no confirmation that any of it may be wreckage from th

zaharie ahmed shah's friend were quick to defend him. this was posted on youtube. most believe he could not be involved. >> i know him as a person that cares tore people. if anything would happen to the plane, he'd make sure crew and passengers, their welfare is taken care of instead of thinking about himself. >> in a nearby suburb is the copilot's home, which police searched a day earlier. the captain and copilot did not ask to fly together. >> fariq abdul hamid was also aledged to have invited people amounts into the cockpit in 2011 and was said to be smoking on board. a neighbour describes him as courteous. >> i didn't know much about the family. i just can say i hope all the news doesn't want to expose how bad, because i think this is - because of the pilot, no one want it to happen. >> mohammed was a passenger on board the flight. he's an aircraft engineer on his way to beijing for work. his father says he has not been questioned by investigators, and pleaded for an end to speculation about who might be behind the disappearance. >> translation: give time to th

shah, 53 years old, active in malaysian politics, specifically for the opposition party. his co-pilot, much younger, 27 years old, and local media is reporting that he was planning to marry his girlfriend. and so far, the material found in both their homes has offered nothing conclusive about any type of scheme or sabotage attempt on the flight. and peter, i want to go back to you on this. you were involved in the investigation of the egypt aircraft, which was found to be a suicide. is there anything about the way this scenario has played out that reminds you or is reminiscent of what happened in egypt air? >> well, there really isn't. because in egypt air, we had indications early on that there was a potential problem with the copilot, that he had run into trouble the night before, that he had not had a successful career at egypt air and we had very solid radar from five different radar sites that showed us a very erratic flight during the final moments of flight 990. so we had much more evidence to go on than the investigators have in this case. >> bob, i have to ask th

shah was an obsessive supporter of the recently jailed opposition leader in malaysia. he was actually jailed just hours before flight 370 took off. so the question here is do we have some sort of ideological proceed te protest in play. >> malaiysia government releasig the information they he have, then we can build the case if it's jihadist linked or just another situation, a suicide or personal derangement. >> one they think that the authorities took away from shah's house was the flight simulate tore which you can see another screen. who used that is one of the questions that needs to be asked. authorities reassembled it and of course they will be dusting it for fingerprints to see if anybody else used that simulator and if they have links to anybody else who was on board there. this might be a crucial piece of evidence. take a listen. >> we have dismantleded it from the room and assembled it at our base and we are getting sxermts to look at it now. >> a couple laptops were also removed from the home of the two pilots in that now that the police have actually searche

. >> you knew captain shah. some people pointing the finger at him. >> he's an excellent pilot. i think they're going the wrong way pointing finger at him. >> you also knew the co-pilot. >> he also learned the -- he's a good muslim. >> now he stressed what we really need to do is find those flight data recorders. only then, will you be able to clear the pilots and find out what really happened to flight 370. back to you. >> all right. thaks so much. we'll talk about the pilots in just a second. first, we want to talk about the new news. we've only seen these pictures now for a few minutes. new images from a thai satellite showing some 300 objects just south of where the french satellites spotted 122 objects. now we have two possible debris fields or is it one that's moving? let's break this down here with david and mary. david is the author of "why planes crash." and marry is the former inspector general of the department of transportation. david, i want to start with you here. let's put up this image once again

helping this might help them learn more about captain zaharie shah. are part of a youtube video to the pilot. known as uncle ari. they insist he couldn't have done anything malicious to the aircraft. >> if anything happened to the plane he would make sure everyone else welfare were taken care of. that's captain zaharie that i l know. >> and shah was an experience pilot with more than 18,000 flight hours and even certified as a simulator. shah proudly showed off the flight simulator he built at home. >> this video is to be used to optimize your compressor -- >> on his youtube channel he demonstrates credit, other passion, cooking. and passion for another interest, radio-controlled aircraft. social media hasn't revealed as much about his co-pilot, 27-year-old fariq hamid. engaged to be married. hamid's neighbor who wants to be known only as miss n, offered the only briefest detail. >> i didn't know much about this family. i can only say, i hope the news doesn't want to expose how bad the pilot was, because i don't think this is because of the pilot. >>

. >> you knew captain shah. some people point a finger at him. >> he's an excellent pilot and i think also an excellent gentleman. i think they're going to wrong way. they're pointing a finger at him. >> you also knew the co-pilot. what can you say about him? >> his father learned the quran by heart. so he also learned the quran by heart. he's a good muslim. i know he's a good muslim. >> now the former ceo of malaysia airlines told us he's hoping they find the aircraft and locate the flight data recorders. he says that's the only way the pilots and their families are going to be able to clear their names. otherwise it's just too difficult to overcome the doubts. no one has any evidence and the pilots can make all too easy a suspect. back to you. >> exactly right. you mentioned the families. the elder son of the pilot has spoken out. tell us what exactly he's been saying and whether other family members are saying anything. >> well the family is -- i think we can say they are in seclusion. they are said to be mov

they found the deleted files on shah's flight simulator. and they turned them over to the fbi. and the director of the fbi was asked if he had the analysis prepared. >> i have teams working literally around the lock to try to exploit that, and i expect it to be done fairly shortly, within a day or two. >> the pilot has many defenders, including the ceo of malaysia airlines, who said that his record of the company has been exemplary. and others deny that he would have deliberately crashed his plane. so far investigators have not connected him to a terrorist group, but there are reports from an anonymous group that a government opposition leader had been convicted and the pilot was upset about that. >> as we have been reporting, bad weather in australia today. and again, they're chasing down the strongest leads yet. what can you tell us about the new satellite images? >> new satellite images from thailand. 1700 miles southwest of perth, australia. the pictures were taken on monday, and that's just one day after another promising lead announced yesterday, 120 objects from a french

now sources say it is important to know there is nothing in zaharie shah's history to suggest he would ever commit a criminal act but frankly with radar and satellite data suggesting the jet was deliberately flown off course by someone they are naturally focusing on the captain and fariq hamid, also they are going through the private computer files of both pilots, scott. >> pelley: where does the investigation go next? >> you know investigators are desperate for some kind of physical evidence, the plane or data recorder or both, the data in the black boxes may be able to tell us what happened here but investigators are not sure right now even where to look. if they can find even a single piece of floating debris from the jet, maybe a sea cushion they will have a chance to narrow the search and ultimately find the wreckage if nothing surfaces in the days ahead investigators could soon face a tough decision as to how long they can continue to look for the missing jet. >> pelley: bob orr in our washington newsroom, bob, thanks very much. flight 370 would be a whole lot easier to find if t

i have kept in saudi ahmed shah who often plays dvd as himself on to social media said he had a flight to sydney in a fit because he was a conscientious products please note of these makeshift lisa continuing background checks on the saudi and best of this aesthetic out to work on it at the same time old possibilities hijack sabotage of the snow psychological problems of someone on board are being investigated chairman mercedes private liquor roles but one season opening australian grand prix on sunday for but to make those have a stuffed shirt off policy to retire to the oft which will spread like a print on the second leadoff for the first to get a park that on the sea to justify for his fourth career victory was also what the blinding his team superior preparations for season full of dramatic changes. red bull's australian private the gilbert god i was second but he was later disqualified for fuel flow with regularity a study trip together like this from one to two second place and teammate justin ferrari's to tumble chatted about all i was full on twelve champions but if apple were

in on the two men in the cockpit, in particular the most skilled pilot, the captain, zaharie ahmad shah. so passionate about flying that he's what's known as a home simmer. he built his own flight simulator as seen in this youtube video and he talked about it online, writing on a chat site "looking for buddies to share this passion." curiously, the captain also posted a series of do it yourself videos like how to repair an ice maker. malaysian investigators are now combing through every part of the pilot's home and his life. this youtube video shows him as a loving father of three but he was also active in malaysia's volatile politics. the captain was a public supporter of opposition party leader anwar ibrahim and a foreign the ruling party's side, a political party in control for over a years. zaharie attended anwar's pro-democracy rallies and meetings and even wore a democracy is dead t-shirt denouncing the one party rule in malaysia. for the first time, anwar tells cnn that he did, in fact, know the pilot of the missing plane can you describe how you know the pilot? >> well, he is at

shah has been scrutinized before. back in 2011, he reportedly let two women into the cockpit during a flight from phuket, thailand to kuala lumpur. >>> u.s. secretary of state john kerry made one point very clear today after six hours of talks with his russian counterpart on the ukraine crisis. the u.s. and the international community will not recognize the outcome of sunday's vote on crimea seceding from ukraine to join russia. both kerry and the russian foreign minister said no diplomatic solutions came from today's talks. russian still promises to respect sunday's secession vote. >> there will be consequences if russia does not find a way to change course and we don't say that as a threat. we say that as a direct consequence of the choices that russia may or may not choose to make here. >> russian troops and local militias have held crimea for weeks now. moscow says they are protecting the ethnic russian majority there. the u.s. will impose sanctions starting monday if russian forces do not leave crimea. >>> well,

is analyzing the hard drive from the flight simulator that the captain of flight 370, zaharie ahmed shah, kept in his home. this follows word today from malaysia that some sort of data had been erased from the hard drive by somebody for reasons unknown. experts are really split at this point on whether that is a routine thing to do, like deleting e-mails or something out of the ordinary, and therefore suspicious instead. but this much we know. 12 days after flight 370 vanished without a trace effectively with 239 people on board, it has now become the longest disappearance in the modern history of commercial aviation. incredibly, almost nothing has been ruled out. but officials seem more and more convinced as time goes by that that plane flew deep into the indian ocean. as opposed to northward over what is effectively very heavily monitored air space. in fact, australia says that it is, quote, significantly refi refining its search area, and that based on the jet's potential flight path and fuel load. so far, here's what else we know. absolutely nothing has turned up. and precious time i

let me let you hear what the ex-malaysian ceo said about pilot shah. >> he's an excellent pilot. and i think and also an excellent gentleman. i think they're going the wrong way, pointing finger at him. >> reporter: so there you go. he says i think they're going the wrong waypointing a finger at him. the bottom line is, piers, the investigation has to continue. they have got to find some proof as to exactly how this happened. they need to find evidence. and then they need to show that evidence. until then it is hard to believe anything. when it's in front of the cameras, in front of the lights, down on paper and it's official and there's a name with it, then we can go with it. but i think a lot of this is conjecture, theories, people looking at any possibility. of course they have to look at the pilots. it is not fair to demonize them until there is proof and we can all see it, piers? >> we also heard from captain zaharie shah's son, ahmed seth zaharie, he defendaed his fathe "i read everything online. i've ignored all the speculation. i know my father better." at the moment ther

the pilot is captain zaharie ahmad shah.he's 53 years old, lives in gated community outside kuala lumpur, 18,000-plus flying hours. joining the airline in 1991. married. three children. one grandchild. supervised some of the pilot planning for malaysia airlines. let's talk about him then we'll talk about the co-pilot. >> extremely experienced. he was a training captain. he was put with the co-pilot that we're going to talk about because the co-pilot was very inexperienced on the 777. this is a man, according to our reporter, been to talk to his ma neighbors, been to the area. involved in helping children and various local charities. yes, he did have a flight simulator in his home because he loved flying so much, and we've often seen the picture of him in that. >> the investigators are going over that flight sim laulator n >> they've gone to the home, looked around. all of which is entirely normal and expected in the circumstances. >> it's also taken them now almost nine days into this to do that. >> yes, that is somewhat ext

so far, it's offered few clues as to whether shah deliberately diverted the plane, those who knew himre shedding new light on the cap. >> reporter: the man who helped captain shah build his home flight simulator now offer cnn a glimpse into the mind of a better pilot. who sources say remain a mysterious key figure in the investigation of flight 370. >> he's just very passionate for his hobby. he wanted to make it as close to reality as it can be. >> reporter: he sold shah some of the parts he used to build the simulator. he told cnn the 53-year-old father was so 2re69ed in making the simulator feel real, he wanted a robotic seat like the one seen here that would mimic what it would feel in the cockpit. he said he doesn't believe shah could have been involved. >> he was very a very serious down to earth guy. even if he was trying. he's a pilot. i wouldn't think that you would go that far, you know, to turn a plane around and fly for hours just to do something stupid. >> reporter: overnight, those who knew shah and his co-pilot fareed kamid said they lived real lives. he was patient and

over the weekend authorities searched the home of captain zaharie ahmed shah, seizing a flight simulator they found there. the co-pilot, too, is being looked at closely, especially since it was his voice last heard from the cockpit. sources tell abc news there is considerable evidence of human intervention in the path the flight took. >> based on the movements of the aircraft and what's been happening, a deliberate act seems more likely to me than a mechanical failure. >> reporter: finally, what about catastrophic failure? the plane out of control, on autopilot until it ran out of fuel. the pilot and the passengers somehow incapacitated, unable to stop it or call for help. >> the plane is monitored by flight computers that will keep the airplane in a stable state. it's protected from severe banks to keep the airplane from spiraling out of control. and these protections that are built into the airplane may very well protect a pilotless plane in a situation like this. >> reporter: for the families this is not just a cliff-hanger. it is agony. >> it's hard because -- because we need answers

malaysian authorities say files were recently deleted from the home flight simulator of pilot zaharie shah local and international expertise have been recorded to examine the flight simulator. some data had been deleted from the simulator and forensic work to retrieve this data is ongoing. >> this raises all kinds of red flags because flight 370's u-turn was manually programmed into the plane's computer from the cockpit and it was done 12 minutes before the co-pilot said good night to malaysian air traffic controllers. bottom line -- that means the turn was premeditated. and as investigators try to recover the missing flight simulator data, the search area for the missing 777 has expanded to nearly -- get this -- three million square miles. chinese vessels in the gulf of thailand got new orders to scour the waters southeast of the bay of bengal. and this is just heartbreaking. no clear answers 12 days after the plane's disappearance. you can see how families' frustration has grown to desperation. a grief stricken woman from china had to be led out of a missilen news conference this morning

amish shah, he has joined us via skype. megan, tell me about to be ruling. >> the pilot, drone pilot, he was charged with reckless driving of the drone. it was a promotional video he was doing in 2011. you can see in the video he is going under bridges and over pedestrians and over cars. but the judge in this case, they came out of the ntsb in denver said, there are no enforceable rules when we are taught about this kind of aircraft. it was shot with a drone less than five pounds. it had one wing. there is no precedent for rules to enforce. the faa has contended that commercial drone use was on a ban while they are working on the rules. this blows all of this out. >> real interesting. let me ask you. are we looking at a situation now where all systems go, fire up your drones? >> absolutely. it will be a gold rush like back in the day. literally, last year, lots of people got in early. i was one of them with a company called sky catch. for the early investors and entrepreneurs having big dreams is about to enter the drone wo

. >> reporter: malaysian police have visited the homes of pilots shah and hamid.had not requested to fly together to the trip to beijing and captain shrks ah's home has been searched. >> we have dismantled it and assembled it and getting experts to look at it now. >> reporter: one friend of captain shah is quoted as saying he is not a terrorist. the indian navy is pulling back, meanwhile, suspended its search. >> approximately three nautical miles out moving starboard. >> reporter: the uss kidd is searching. >> just to give you some context as to the size of that area, if you superimposed a picture of the united states in this area between india and malaysia, it almost would be like looking for one person somewhere between new york and california. >> reporter: veteran investigators now say it's possible the plane and its passengers may never be found. >> it may be that somewhere down the road, a month from now, a year from now debris watches up on the beach someplace that would identify the airplane but we will never be able to track it back to find the actual deb

still, shah and his co-pilot are under investigation. we join yahya on his simulator at buchanan field airport. where he simulates a take off. and, during the flight, yahya explains how its possible one can learn how to disable a transponder -- which sends signals to a radar pinpointing your location. yahya says turning off a transponder is as simply as hitting a switch. malaysia airlines says flight 370 may have flown for more than seven hours after its transponder stopped sending signals. knowing where to fly in order to avoid radar detection is also something yahya says can be rehersed on a simulator as well. but once flight 370 dissappeared, it dissappeared. pakistan and india are among the countries saying the plane never showed up on their radars. and, now the men in the cockpit are under an international microscope. at buchanan field airport in concord, philippe djegal, kron four news. san francisco police are investigating an accident that left an elderly man in the hospital. witnesses say the victim was crossing at the mission &

. >>> another bit of information, data was deleted from captain shah's home made flight simulator. that's flight 370 captain in a youtube video. the malaysian government seized that simulator and says data was deleted but did not say who deleted the information. >> i would like to take this opportunity to state that the passengers, the pilots and the crew remain innocent until proven otherwise. >> cnn aviation analyst and former inspector general for the department of transportation joins me now. welcome, mary. >> thank you. good to be with you. >> nice have you here. according to the "new york times" that data was deleted on february 3rd, a month before the flight vanished. it sounds like a thin lead. is it? >> well, it's a very thin lead but it is a lead because in some of the investigations i've been involved in we were able to recover the computer data and i think, you know, very good computer analysts and experts will be able to recover it, unless as everyone knows it was rewritten over, something was put on top of it. it will be difficult. but having been deleted that much in

peter shah, aljazeera, moscow. >> during his speech, vladimir putin stated that not a single shot had been fired in the military intervention in crimea. and hours later, russian troops were being blamed for an attack in crimea. nick schifrin is in. >> their three weeks, they have occupied bases and moved into government institutions, and some fear that the first shots fired today won't be the last. outside of base 2174, a possible dangerous turning point, for the first time that russian troops invaded, they opened fired and killed a ukrainian soldier, and they took their position, right behind these guys. the base is now run by pro russia militias. and the militias tried to make sure that we didn't film. first, by trying to grab the camera, and then kicking a member of our team. throughout our time here, they didn't want us to show what happened. the ukrainian military said that occupying soldiers killed and wounded ukrainian soldiers. this is the ukrainian facility base, the white building behind me, and behind that, the tall building of what appeared to be snipers, and over here. th

is the her gemunder of the it's very shah sera shot the contemporary writer so she went there and sheburqa and his father said to her louisa elizabeth was her scottish name, he said if you will convert to islam and she knows how to hold the floor with a gun you can marry her. if she is happy to convert to islam in 1918 and she was a scottish highlanders daughter and she knew how to hold a fork. wonderful writing, the best adventure writing as rosie forbes which probably no one has heard of. she is out of

, idri shah, the contemporary writer. so she went there, and she wore a burka, and his father said to her, louisa elizabeth was her scottish name. he said, well, if she'll convert to islam and she knows how to hold the fort with a gun, you can marry her. and she was happy to convert to islam in 1918, and she was a scottish highlander's daughter, and she knew how to hold the fort. very, very wonderful writing, the best adventure writing the roe see that ford's -- rosita ford's which which probably nobody's heard of. and she's out of print. she's in the 1920s and 1930s, and she went everywhere, including to afghanistan. british, as i said, they go without sleep, they go without water, they don't need food. [laughter] they climb the most rugged landscapes possible and on horseback. they ride into desert storms, straight into them just for the fun. and i'm not exaggerating. so i think that we have reached, very rapidly, nearly the end of this wonderful evening. is there, is this about it? >> we have time for one more question

pilot zaharie shah. married, father of three, a grandfather. a home flight simulator.to fly low as someone suggests or teach someone else how to fly the 777 in case the co-pilot was incapacitated? his pilots, also in question, shah supported democratic reform and had opposition to a political leader who hours earlier was sentenced to five years in jail. here is a picture of that yshah co-pilot, fariq hamid, the report shows the two did not request a flight that day. hamid had just graduated to the 777, he was 27 years old. it was his voice heard, saying all right, good night. now, he invited two blondes into the cockpit for an hour of smoking. one of those girls called the visit friendly but sleazy. >> at one point, they were so engaged in conversation, he took my friend's hand and said your hand is creased, you're a very creative person, he commented on her nails, stuff like that. >> they are hearing a ping from the flight data recorder, the one thing we do know that we can say this, everybody on board this plane was both a possible suspect and victim. and right now t

they continue to dig deeper into the background of the pilots, zaharie shah and fariq hamid.d outside consultants are looking at files deleted from shah's home-flight simulator in the weeks before the plane disappeared. so far, nothing indicates foul play. when flight 370 took off for the very last time, it was the co-pilot's first time at the controls of the boeing 777 without supervision and only his sixth time flying that jumbo set. but the fact that he was right out of training may have been a good thing because he had all of those check lists fresh on his mind. investigators are continuing to look at hijacking, sabotage, personal problems of the passengers and the rest of the crew and tomorrow we may learn more about where the investigation is heading as the inspector general in kuala lumpur is expected to speak. we'lli we'll be following that lead. wolf? our aviation correspondent rene marsh is here with this part of the story. what are we learning about the final path of this airliner? >> wolf, the satellite analysis and data has never been used for an investigation li

there's a flight simulator in shah's home which has brought speculation. but with decades on the job and hours of flying experience, friends say that stimulator was about his love for flying. >> if you are allowed to choose a pilot, i would choose him. i have full confidence and trust in him because of his joy and passion for flying. you know, if something happened to the flight, i would believe he would make sure of the safety and welfare of everybody else before he thinks about himself. >> this change in the investigation was prompted by electronic data that shows the plane flying a straight path. once communication was cut off, the jet made a hard left turn, leaving the china sea, flying west over the malaysian peninsula and then either went northeast toward the bay of bengal or southwest over the indian ocean. >> we've been working nonstop to assist in the investigation. we've put national security second to the search. >> experts continue to criticize this investigation, questioning why this particular part of the investigation comes a week after the

the pilot, 53 circled "saw" shah was a veteran pilot with 11,000 hours of experience. his son told the newspaper that speculation is unfounded. he young man said i read everything on line but i ignored all the speculation. i know my father better. we may not be as close as he travels much but i understand him. agony continues for families of victims who continue to criticize malaysia for its handling of the search. the fbi continues to analyze hard drives from the pilot's home simulator but so far nothing solid on that end, jon. jon: hard to believe three weeks in there is little hard information about what happened to the plane. steve centanni. thank you very much. >> reporter: you bet. jenna: president's approval ratings hitting record low earlier this month. are feelings about him changing. brand new polls released and what the numbers mean. we'll go in depth. >>> officials in washington state demanding action. what he says what need to be done while crews with the emotional task of searching through this disaster zone. >> in my 40 years of public service, 31 years