Sergei Deineka and Oleg Chustrak were childhood friends who graduated from high school together in Odessa, Ukraine, then served as conscripts in the Soviet Army before reuniting to open a furniture manufacturing and retail business in their home town. They also imported furniture from Malaysia and China, which is why they came to be on MH370 the fateful night of March 8, 2014. They were travelling from a furniture trade show in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to another one in Guanzhou, China.

At least, that’s the story their relatives told officials. But does it really hold water? I’ve spent years scouring government records and interviewing Ukrainians to better understand what Chustrak and Deineka were up to. The gaps in the story are significant—but at the end of the day, it all makes a kind of sense, if you understand the realities of the post-Soviet world.

Meanwhile, we’re still in our first week of the Kickstarter to raise money for the Finding MH370 Project, and we have a long way to go, so if you could make a pledge that would be amazing. Let’s bust open the paradox of the Lepas barnacles!

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