‘I saw exactly what happened to MH370 - I’m the forgotten eyewitness’

Extensive searches were made for the aircraft, which vanished in March 2014. (file photo) (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

A man believes he saw the missing Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 ablaze in the sky before it vanished in 2014. The Boeing 777 disappeared with 239 people onboard on March 8 that year, whilst en route to Beijing from Kuala Lumpur.

Military radar logs showed that the plane turned west as it deviated from its planned flight path for unknown reasons, by which time its transponder had already been turned off, BBC News previously reported. Little is known about what happened to the commercial liner, which sent no message or distress signal, and speculation and conspiracy theories continue to surround one of the most perplexing aviation mysteries in history.

Relatives of the passengers onboard are still desperate for answers. (Image: AP)

Back in 2014, a New Zealand man working on the Songa Mercur oil rig off the coast of Vietnam claimed he lost his position after an email reporting to bosses what he saw was leaked, bringing an unwelcome deluge of media interest.

Mr McKay was reportedly subcontracted by another firm, M-I Swaco, to work at the site.

Mike McKay, 57, emailed his employers alerting them to the possible sighting and telling them that he had reported it, CNN reported at the time.

In his email, he told bosses that he "observed the plane burning at high altitude at a compass bearing of 265 to 275 degrees from our surface location".

The message began: "Gentlemen. I believe I saw the Malaysian Airlines flight come down. The timing is right. I tried to contact Malaysian and Vietnamese officials several days ago. But I do not know if the message has been received."

"While I observed (the plane) it appeared to be in one piece," the email continued. "From when I first saw the burning (plane? ) until the flames went out (at high altitude) was 10-15 seconds.

"There was no lateral movement, so it was either coming toward our position, stationary (falling), or going away from our location.

"The general position of the observation was perpendicular/south-west of the normal flight path and at a lower altitude than the normal flight paths."

Shortly after the email was allegedly leaked, the company was inundated with calls, Mr McKay said.

Speaking to the Sunday Star-Times at the time, he claimed: “This became intolerable for them, and I was removed from the rig and not invited back. Contracts meant little in the oilfield. The oil patch is a rough, unforgiving game.”

NZer reported that in response to his report, Vietnamese officials deployed aircraft to search for the aircraft to no avail.

Some reports suggested they were going to act on his sighting before search efforts were moved to the Andaman Sea two days later.

Mr McKay was reportedly released by his employer ahead of schedule, but was paid until the end of his work period.

A spokesperson for M-I Swaco, Mr McKay's former employer, said: "The circumstances of Mr McKay’s departure have nothing to do with the MH370 story or the resulting publicity."

Searches for the plane have continued in the years since the crash. Efforts by marine robotics firm Ocean Infinity to locate the plane were suspended in April, with Malaysia's Transport Minister Anthony Loke telling AFP at the time that, "Right now, it's not the season", and that search efforts would restart at the end of the year.

Malaysian authorities have since confirmed the search, led by Ocean Infinity, will recommence on December 30 and run for 55 days.

The country's transport ministry said: "The latest development underscores the country's commitment to providing closure to the families affected by this tragedy", local media reported.