Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17: Crash cause coverup likely impossible

Obama accused separatists of impeding the investigation and removing evidence

A pro-Russian fighter guards the crash site of Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 near the village of Hrabove. (Evgeniy Maloletka/Associated Press)

Since pro-Russian separatist rebels took control of the Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crash site, concerns have been raised that the insurgents accused of downing the jetliner may have tampered with or hauled away debris.

 

Although the site may have been compromised, experts say there will likely be enough evidence and clues scattered about to get answers about the crash, even if the rebels have attempted to hide the cause.

 

“I never say never about anything, but I kind of doubt they could identify and find all the pieces,” said Richard Marquise, a former FBI agent who led the task force investigating the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103 over Lockerbie, Scotland. “I mean, if they sent a team of 1,000 people there, let's presuppose it was the Russians … they might be lucky to pick up every single piece and walk away with it, but I think in a huge crime scene it’s very difficult.”

 

 

So far, separatists have given international observers only limited access to the crash site. On Monday, U.S. President Barack Obama accused the separatists of impeding the investigation and removing evidence. “What exactly are they trying to hide?” he asked.

Rebels have handed over two black box flight recorders to aviation experts, which could provide some information. Or, as in the case of Pan Am Flight 103, they might only reveal that a catastrophic failure on the aircraft occurred. This is why debris from the wreckage of planes often provides crucial clues into the cause of crashes.

 

In the case of the bombing of Pan Am Flight 103, forensic specialists found framing from an aluminum baggage container marred with the residue of high explosives.This allowed investigators to determine quickly that a bomb had brought down the plane, Marquise said.

 

Fragments from the fuselage also revealed that the blast did not come from outside the aircraft. Meanwhile, investigators found on the ground a tiny fragment “no bigger than a thumbnail”  that came from a radio/cassette player that had been used to store the bomb, and a fragment from a timer that could be traced to Libya.

 

Unlike Lockerbie bombing case

The case of Flight MH17 is different, if it was a missile that brought down the Boeing 777. Wreckage of the plane, which might be scattered over kilometres, would be important to determine whether the plane was downed by an external force.

 

"If it was an explosive device, what the investigators would be looking for is evidence of that explosive device,” said Phil Giles, who worked in Britain's Air Accidents Investigation Branch and was part of the Lockerbie bombing investigation team  "That’s all stuff that, with people poring over the site, can get trampled on, moved. Whereas with this [crash] you’re really in a different scenario.”