Search for missing Malaysian jetliner expands after new data is uncovered

The Wall Street Journal reports Flight 370 “pinged” satellites after the time of the last confirmed location. The pings allowed investigators to track the plane even after primary tracking systems stopped working or were turned off. Officials said they are not sure why the pings stopped.

No signals were detected after the last confirmed location from other equipment onboard that provide location data — including the black box, life rafts, which transmit emergency locator radio signals, and the transponders located in the cockpit.

Officials told ABC News that there were indications that the other data reporting systems were deliberately and “systematically shut down.” CBS News confirmed the report.

Malaysian officials said Thursday that they are expanding their search to the Andaman Sea. At the request of the Malaysian government, the destroyer USS Kidd was moving to the Strait of Malacca to assist in the search for the plane, Pentagon officials said. The ships’ helicopters could be used to search the area for any clues or evidence of the jetliner’s location.

Air traffic controllers lost contact with the Boeing 777 aircraft at 2:40 a.m. on Saturday. The jetliner, carrying 239 passengers from 14 countries, departed from Kuala Lumpur and was supposed to land in Beijing.