Well, I wouldn't be so bold as to suggest this forum's questioning is a reason why, but just minutes ago NT Times confirmed the computer pre-programming angle:
at
http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/18/wo...ight.html?_r=0
it says:
"WASHINGTON — The first turn to the west that diverted the missing Malaysia Airlines plane from its planned flight path from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing was carried out through a computer system that was most likely programmed by someone in the plane’s cockpit who was knowledgeable about airplane systems, according to senior American officials.
Instead of manually operating the plane’s controls, whoever altered Flight 370’s path typed seven or eight keystrokes into a computer on a knee-high pedestal between the captain and the first officer, according to officials. The Flight Management System, as the computer is known, directs the plane from point to point specified in the flight plan submitted before each flight. It is not clear whether the plane’s path was reprogrammed before or after it took off."
Hmmmn....
(UPD: WSJ reporter David Ostrower also just corroborated this new NY Times report in an on-air interview)