MH370 Likely Spiraled Out of Control Into Indian Ocean, Report Suggests

— -- MH370, the Malaysia Airlines jet that mysteriously vanished in March 2014, likely accelerated on decent as it corkscrewed into the Indian Ocean -- indicating the plane probably wasn’t configured for a controlled landing, a new report from the Australian Transport Safety Bureau suggests.

Though the jet’s transponder and automated data systems were switched off early in the flight, rudimentary Satcom continued to ping. Investigators have assessed that data and believe it is “consistent with the aircraft being in a high and increasing rate of descent,” according to the ATSB.

Additionally, analysis of debris that washed ashore indicates the Boeing 777’s flaps were likely “in the retracted position” when the plane hit the water -- consistent with the ATSB’s theory that the plane plunged in the sea seconds after running out of fuel.

(A competing theory suggests someone in the cockpit may have deliberately attempted to ditch the jet by landing it on the surface of the ocean, a maneuver that normally would have included deploying the flaps.)

All this data seems to suggest that authorities are searching in the right place -- as do the drift patterns of the debris. But despite scouring more than 110,000 square kilometers (about 42,471 square miles) of the Indian Ocean, investigators have yet to unearth the wreckage of the plane or the remains of its 239 occupants.

The conundrum has Australian authorities wondering if there could possibly be something they’ve missed, prompting them to release their data in the hopes that other analysts can identify an alternative scenario.

ABC News' David Kerley contributed to this report.