ago. veteran pilot rob johnson activates the boeing 777 autopilot 20 seconds after takeoff. it s automated. reporter: the autopilot follows way points along the flight path and can land the plane if necessary. less than an hour into its flight, mh-370 veered off the planned route to beijing. makes the same sharp turn as the missing plane. could be the autopilot made it turn on its own? nope. reporter: nobody knows why one or both decided to change course or why the plane disappeared from civilian radar. the result of either a massive electrical problem or someone simply switching off communication systems. other theories include a cockpit fire overtaking a crew and leaving no time for a distress call. russian hijackers faking satellite data find the plane north to kazakhstan. the plane shot down heading for diego, garcia a u.s. military base in the indian ocean. even an elaborate murder/suicide