Blaine & The Plane

THE WEEK brings you the story of a one-man army's mission to unravel the mystery of Flight MH370. And what it means to families of Indian Victims.

- Rachna Tyagi

Since the age of seven, he dreamt of visiting every country in the world. On the last count, he had been to 177 of 195 countries. His weather-beaten face and wind-swept hair testify his love for travel.

Blaine Alan Gibson’s wanderlust and passion for adventure, he says, are in his DNA. It takes the Seattle-based lawyer to mountains, deserts, oceans, forests and to places where “historic or political events” are happening. He relishes “solving mysteries”, too.

From exploring the Guatemalan and Belize jungles as part of a project trying to solve the Mayan mystery, to being the second American to go to the epicentre of the Tunguska meteorite crater in Siberia, Gibson, 58, has done it all.

“I talk with people in different time zones across the world. So, I do not know what day of the week it is,” he quips.

Right now, Gibson, who is reluctant to disclose his current location, is chasing one of the biggest mysteries in modern history: Flight MH370. What happened to the Malaysia Airlines flight from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing that disappeared on March 8, 2014?

“We need to find out to give answers to families of the people who went missing, as well as to the world,” he says.

Gibson is often seen in ‘MH370’ T-shirts. “One of them was purchased at the first commemoration [of the flight going missing] in Kuala Lumpur,” he says. “It was made by the families of the victims.”

The others were gifted to him by the families at the second commemoration in Kuala Lumpur. “They refused to accept money, and insisted on me taking them, including the one I am wearing right now— which says MH 370 The Search: Keep It On.”