Why MH370 may have nosedived into the ocean

MH370 could have plunged into the ocean at a 90-degree angle, explaining why no wreckage of the doomed flight has been found.

A team of mathematicians have suggested the aircraft nosedived into the Indian Ocean, which would have kept it intact, News Corp has reported.

Texas A&M University at Qatar mathematician Goong Chen said the last moments of the aeroplane were unlikely to be established until the black box was found.

"But forensics strongly supports that MH370 plunged into the ocean in a nosedive," he said.

Mr Chen said if the plane crashed in a nosedive, the wings would have snapped off instantly but all debris would have been heavy enough to sink to the ocean floor.

A more typical crash would have led to visible oil slicks on the ocean surface, along with wreckage being scattered across a wide area.

In many cases, debris is found washed up along shores of the nearest islands and land masses.

MH370 disappeared on March 8 last year with 239 people on board, and the subsequent search for the wreckage led by Australia has covered more than 48,000 sq km of ocean.