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Function shortly after the last communication. it could have experienced an electrical problem. the component could have failed or it could have been switched off. we don't know. but what we do know is that the data link system known as acars was stopped from transmitting data, but the unit itself continued to talk to the satellites. that takes specialized knowledge and it takes some deliberate key strokes into the computer system to disable its ability to transmit data. that's a deliberate act by someone with knowledge. and so that is an important distinction and difference between all the ot...

Changed the track of the airplane. the other one disabled a data link system known as acars but only the data stopped flowing. the acars system continued to talk to the satellite network. >> right. i've had some pilots say well, you know, a fire could have broken out and that could have disabled the transponders but if a fire broke out, it wouldn't be delivering signals the next eight hours, right? so we can rule out a fire on the plane? >> well, let's not rule anything out. let's do this. let's say that the likelihood of fire is low because when you look at statistically inflight fires in the...

In the area with more aircraft, to be in the south china sea. i wouldn't head off to the indian ocean. >> given what we know about the behavior of the plane, do you think it would be a trained pilot at the controls? >> absolutely. we talked about this, i think, a little bit last time, not just because of the flying but the systems involved. i mean, the transponder, turning that off is no big deal, but as i said yesterday, the other equipment, specifically the data link system and others, you have to physically get into the computer system through a display and log off. and that's not something...

Them for some reason, the air traffic controller might say i don't see you, can you recycle your transponder, i don't see you. there are other tracking technologies, this adsb system, i believe this plane had that but the ground stations aren't everywhere yet. >> that's my understanding, katie, from talking to a pilot last week, someone who has actually flown this aircraft. the point he made was he called it a data link system and that that system is constantly sending different kinds of information. but it appears from what we know now in the investigation, we do have some information that th...

If you look at the fact that they didn't communicate on any of the radios, they may have failed or chosen to be unused. we don't know. the transponder ceased to function shortly after the last communication. it could have experienced an electrical problem. the component could have failed or it could have been switched off. we don't know. but what we do know is that the data link system known as acars was stopped from transmitting data, but the unit itself continued to talk to the satellites. that takes specialized knowledge and it takes some deliberate key strokes into the computer system to d...