Malaysia plane mystery: Police are looking into psychological background of both pilots

ONE of the pilots of the missing Malaysia Airlines plane had a home-made flight simulator in his house, it emerged today as profiles of the flight crew began to take shape.

Zaharie Ahmad Shah Zaharie Ahmad Shah [ENTERPRISE]

Everyone is free to do his own hobby

Malaysia Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya

Police have said they are looking at the psychological background of both pilots, as well as their family life and connections as a line of inquiry into what happened to Flight MH370, which vanished early March 8 while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

There is no evidence linking them to any wrongdoing. 


Zaharie, originally from Malaysia's northern Penang state, was known known for cooking food for community events or making sure his wife and children did when he couldn't attend.

The grandfather posted photos online of the flight simulator he built for his home using three large computer monitors and other accessories.

Asked at a news conference whether it was unusual for pilots to have such equipment at home, Malaysia Airlines CEO Ahmad Jauhari Yahya said "everyone is free to do his own hobby."  

Zaharie was certified by Malaysia's Department of Civil Aviation as a flight simulator examiner, according to Malaysia Airlines. 

He was also a supporter of Malaysia's main opposition parties, he had volunteered to be a poll monitor in recent elections.  

 Fariq Abdul Hamid [H]

Co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid, 27, was very much the junior of the pair in terms of flight experience - with 2,763 hours.


During the flight, the pilots smoked and flirted, one of the women, South African Jonti Roos, said in an interview broadcast by Australia's Nine Network. The claims were backed up with numerous photos showing Roos and her friend posing in the cockpit. 

Although initially thrilled by the experience, Roos also described it as "possibly a little bit sleazy." 

Malaysia Airlines said it was shocked by the report and was investigating. 

Fariq was a "good boy, a good Muslim, humble and quiet," said Ahmad Sarafi Ali Asrah, the head of a mosque near Fariq's two-story home in a middle-class neighborhood on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur. 

"I don't think he is a playboy. But I don't know about his personal life." the imam added, 

He described Fariq's parents as distraught over the missing plane and said the community was solidly supporting the family with prayers. 

Fariq, the son of a high-ranking civil servant in Selangor state, joined Malaysia Airlines in 2007. With 2,763 hours of flight experience, he had only recently started co-piloting the sophisticated Boeing 777. 

"His father still cries when he talks about Fariq. His mother too," Ahmad Sarafi said.  

Fariq had a brush with fame when he was filmed recently by a crew from "CNN Business Traveler," and reporter Richard Quest described it as a perfect landing of a Boeing 777-200, the same model as the plane that vanished. An online tribute page to the pilots shows a photo of Fariq in the cockpit with Quest, both smiling. 

Fariq played futsal, a modified form of soccer popular in Southeast Asia, with neighbourhood youngsters, and he paid for their sports shirts.