Speculation quickly moved to foul play with the discovery that a signalling device had been turned off against normal flight procedures.
The search then changed from the Gulf of Thailand to the Indian Ocean, southwest of Perth.
In an era of global satellite surveillance, it seemed impossible that a large intercontinental airliner could just disappear – but the Malaysian government eventually had to declare it an accident with no survivors.
Four months later, the unthinkable happened: another Malaysian aircraft, flight MH-17, was shot down over the Ukraine, killing 298 people.
Despite these high-profile tragedies, 2014 was the safest year on record for flying.
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