China/False News - Landed at Nanning
False News: MH370 landed at Nanning in China
Early on the day that MH370 went missing, Saturday, 8 March 2014 there was speculation on social media that the aircraft had landed at Nanning (in China).
News of any landing would have given relatives and friends of passengers some hope, but the news was false.
Early Rumour(s)
Hugh Dunleavy, Malaysia Airlines Commercial Director, described his experience after being recalled to the control room at Malaysia Airlines in the early hours of Saturday, 8 March 2014:-
... Then there was the “frightening speed at which false information was coming in — after only an hour in the control room, rumours were coming in on social media. ‘Your plane has landed in Nanning, China’. ‘It’s in the airport of an island near Borneo’. You’ve got to follow up, calling your local people, getting them out of bed to find up someone who worked at the airports — mostly remote places, not 24-hour operations — to check if the plane was there. We lost an hour just on that Nanning rumour.
Source: The plane truth: Malaysia Airlines boss on what really happened the night flight MH370 went missing, The Standard, 23 June 2014 STDUK-108
Malaysia Airlines Statement
At 10:30 am on the day that MH370 went missing, Saturday, 8 March 2014 Malaysia Airlines stated in the 3rd Media Statement:-
There has been speculation that the aircraft has landed at Nanming. We are working to verify the authenticity of the report and others.
目前有推测该客机在Nanming地区降落，我们正在和有关当局证实该信息的真实性。
News Media
The story - that the aircraft had made a safe emergency landing in Nanning, China - spread quickly on Chinese social media and was then published, as shown below:-
Perhaps the most damaging rumor came shortly after the jet, which was carrying 239 people from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing, was reported missing Saturday local time: A story spread mainly on Chinese social media that the craft had made a safe emergency landing in Nanning, China.
...
The rumors picked up steam, with some local Malaysian media outlets publishing similar stories. Both Malaysian Airlines officials and the Chinese government later said the safe landing rumors were false.
Source: Social Media Spread False Reports of Safe Landing, NBC News NBCUS-001
This article also contained misinformation, implying that Nanming is in Vietnam. Nanming is in China, as explained below.
Adding to the confusion, some of the incorrect rumors cited Nanming, Vietnam, not Nanning, China, as the landing site. Other variations of the story said the plane had run out of fuel and had either landed or crashed in mainland Malaysia.
Source: Social Media Spread False Reports of Safe Landing, NBC News NBCUS-001
Nanning or Nanming?
"Nanming District (Chinese: 南明区) is one of 6 urban districts of the prefecture-level city of Guiyang, the capital of Guizhou Province, Southwest China.
It is home to the Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport". (Wikipedia).
"Nanning is the capital of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in southern China". (Wikipedia).
"Nanning Wuxu International Airport is located in Wuxu Town, 31 km southwest of Nanning, the capital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in Southern China". (China Southern Airlines)
Alternate Airports
The Flight Plan for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370 lists the destination airport - Beijing Capital International Airport - and two alternative airports:-
- ZBTJ - Tianjin Binhai International Airport, and
- ZBSJ - Shijiazhuang Zhengding International Airport
Neither Guiyang Longdongbao International Airport nor Nanning Wuxu International Airport were listed as alternative airports for the flight.
Conclusion
News of any landing would have given relatives and friends of passengers on MH370 some hope, but the news was false.