MH370: Captain Zaharie Shah Becomes Chief Suspect In Disappearance Of Missing Malaysian Airlines Flight

The pilot of the vanished flight MH370 has become the chief suspect in its disappearance, after police learned he had made no social plans after the day it disappeared.

Captain Zaharie Shah had no social or professional engagements after March 8, the day the flight vanished while flying from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing with 239 people aboard.

The Malaysian police investigation has not ruled out mechanical failure as an explanation but says he is the most likely culprit if human action was to blame, The Sunday Times (£) reported.

The rest of the crew were all cleared by security checks, the paper reported.

A photo of Zaharie Shah (top right) and co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid (top left) atop a poster appealing for the missing plane to 'please come back'

As well as not making any arrangements for after the flight, Shah also programmed flights far into the southern Indian Ocean - the plane's most likely resting place - on the flight simulator at his home.

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The official police inquiry is due to report soon.

“The police investigation is still ongoing. To date no conclusions can be made as to the contributor to the incident and it would be sub judice to say so. Nevertheless, the police are still looking into all possible angles," a police spokesperson told The Sunday Times.

“The leads uncovered so far are still being investigated.”

Data provided by the satellite company Inmarsat have shown that MH370 deviated from its route, taking a left turn towards the Indian Ocean. It is presumed to have run out of fuel and crashed.