We told you recently that investigators had finished their comb-through of all the passengers of flight MH370. The police Inspector-General had determined that there was no reason to suspect anyone with a ticket of hijacking, sabotage, psychological, or personal problems that might have led to the disappearance of the airliner. However, we did note that the cabin crew, pilot and co-pilot were still under investigation.

Now one more piece of the puzzle has been cleared. Remember the flight simulator belonging to the pilot, Captain Zaharie Shah? It had been the focus of a lot of suspicion and concern. Authorities had seized the equipment, wondering if Shah had practiced any maneuvers or flight paths that might give them a clue as to what happened. The equipment was sent to the FBI’s lab in Quantico, Virginia for further investigation.

Then came the news that some files had been deleted from the flight simulator. The 24-hour news cycle was all abuzz on that revelation for a bit. While some saw that as suspicious, others realized that it may be a simple matter of a man clearing hard drive space so he could load more simulation materials.

Now, ABC News reports that the FBI has finished its fine-tooth-comb work on the flight simulator.

“They have finished with the simulator,” an official confirmed. “There is nothing suspicious whatsoever about what they found. There’s nothing at all (criminal) about the pilot. Right now there is zero evidence of a criminal act by the flight crew.”

The further the loose ends of this investigation are sewn up, the more it looks like what almost everyone has come to suspect for a while: there was a fire in the cabin or cockpit. In an effort to fight that fire, altitude was changed, systems were rebooted, and perhaps a course change was made to try to find a place to land. Failing in that effort, the plane eventually crashed in the Indian Ocean.

Crews are still searching for wreckage, hoping to find a flight data recorder and other evidence about what may have happened.

Image via Wikimedia Commons