Regular Communications
At 1:01 a.m., the pilot was able to confirm with Lumpur radar that they reached the desired cruising altitude. The cockpit reached out to the Lumpur operations again to confirm they were holding altitude at 1:08 a.m. Then, Captain Zaharie exchanged some final words with Lumpur radar at 1:19 a.m. The Lumpur Radio operator said, “Malaysian three-seven-zero, contact Ho Chi Minh one-two-zero decimal nine. Good night.” Captain Zaharie responded, “Good night. Malaysian three-seven-zero.
One Last Signal
The prior communication was the last verbal communication from Flight 370, but not the last signal. Ho Chi Minh radar did pick up the plane a minute after the last communication. The records say the plane was still at 35,000 feet, as Captain Zaharie said before, and was traveling at 542 mph. But then, it vanished. Radar systems in Kuala Lumpur and Vietnam could not pick up a signal.