Originally Posted by
Blake777
It's difficult to work out exactly the reasoning for the vast change to the search area. However, they have publicly stated it is because of new analysis of the radar data between the South China Sea and the limits of where it was tracked to.
It's not difficult, it is impossible. We haven't been given the data.
That said, my understanding is that the analysis of the satellite pings requires an assumption of constant speed and heading. This does not give unique solution, because you need to know where the start point is (i.e. the point at which the a/c started flying south). If the a/c speed west over the Malay peninsula was higher than assumed up until now then the start point of the southerly track was farther westwards and the mathematical solutions to the satellite ping data have the a/c flying more easterly, ending up closer to Western Australia.