Questions about the fate of Malaysia Airlines Flight 370, which disappeared Saturday over Southeast Asia, continued Friday to hang in the air. Here is what we know — and don’t know — from hard data to conspiracy theories.

 

1. Where is the plane?

As evidence grows that the plane could have flown for hours after losing contact with air traffic control, the search area too has grown: It now includes the Gulf of Thailand, South China Sea, Strait of Malacca, the Andaman Sea and the Indian Ocean.

2. Did it go off course?

Possibly. "I’m trying to imagine a scenario in which a pilot would do that," said John Testrake, an American Airlines pilot with more than a quarter-century of experience flying. But, he added, "if it had stayed on course, they would have found the wreckage."

 

3. How big is the search area?

Authorities break huge swaths of the possible crash site into small grids. Then, planes or ships scour the grids to eliminate them as candidates. As of Friday, 57 ships and 48 aircraft from 13 countries were involved in the search. The grids cover the southern tip of Vietnam, South Thailand, about half of Peninsular Malaysia and parts of the South China Sea, Gulf of Thailand, Strait of Malacca and Andaman Sea and the Indian Ocean. [Link]