Do not be surprised if China takes over the investagation because most on board were Chinese nationals.
While the PRC has every right to be deeply involved in the investigation due to the loss of its citizens (majority on flight were Chinese), I can’t help but wonder how much of the demand is driven by the desire to know the details of the INMARSAT (sp) technique for analyzing the data. It apparently had never been used before; might be of strategic interest.
Whichever direction the plane went, and whether or not the plane is at the bottom of the ocean or sitting in Pakistan, this is a message from Islam to China. Two Muslim pilots disappeared with two hundred Chinese nationals. The message? You need our oil, we don't need your money and don't mess with our brothers in western China. The message is wrapped in the plausible deniabiliy of this impenetrable fact pattern. The pilots were smart, skilled and willing to die for Islam.
As such, China is the biggest impetus to get to the bottom of this. They will not believe Inmarsat without reviewing all the data. They will not believe anything that the Malaysians say.
So, solely in this situation, I'm rooting for the Chinese. Everyone else is speaking with forked tongue to protect Islam.