Indonesian fishermen 'saw' plane crash on Mar. 8

MANILA, Philippines — Fishermen claimed to have witnessed a plane crash into the waters in the Strait of Malacca off the North Sumatra provincial district of Pangkalan Susu in Indonesia.

The locals suspect that what they saw could be the missing Malaysia Airlines flight MH370. The authorities have yet to verify the fishermen's claim.

"We saw an airplane crash around the Malacca Straits," Hendra, a fisherman, told state news agency Antara on Monday.

"We could not go to the location where the aircraft was lost due to large waves, and the boat did not have enough fuel," he added.

Hendra said that he and several other fishermen were trying to catch fish between the waters of Malay Peninsula and Sumatra last March 8.

It was on the same day that the Boeing 777-200 jet carrying 239 people vanished from the radar en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur. About 25 countries are conducting a search and rescue operation for the aircraft.

Hendra added that the group saw a white plane "crossing and circling" when smoke came out from the rear portion of the airliner. It then circled again before it tilted and crashed.

"We suspect the plane crashed into the sea," Hendra added.

Antara News said that the aircraft could be somewhere off Idi Village in East Aceh.

Prime Minister Najib Razak on Saturday confirmed that Malaysian air force defense radar picked up traces of the plane turning back westward, crossing over Peninsular Malaysia into the northern stretches of the Strait of Malacca. Authorities previously had said this radar data could not be verified.

Officials revealed a new timeline Monday suggesting the final voice transmission from the cockpit of the missing Malaysian plane may have occurred before any of its communications systems were disabled, adding more uncertainty about who aboard might have been to blame.

The search for Flight 370  has now been expanded deep into the northern and southern hemispheres. - with Associated Press