Who is Richard Godfrey and what is his background in aviation or oceanography?
Executive summary
Richard Godfrey is a British researcher best known for independent work trying to locate Malaysia Airlines Flight MH370; he presents himself as a retired aerospace/systems engineer with a background in systems engineering, autopilot/automatic-landing systems and decades of IT work, and he has published many MH370 papers proposing WSPR (radio “tripwire”) methods and drift analyses [1] [2] [3]. Some outlets and experts accept him as an experienced aerospace engineer and acknowledge his contributions; other researchers and critics say his formal aviation/aerospace credentials are primarily in IT/systems engineering and question claims of aerospace-specific experience [2] [4] [5].
1. Who he says he is and what he publishes
Godfrey runs the Site “The Search for MH370” and has authored dozens of technical papers and blog posts about MH370, including detailed WSPR (Weak Signal Propagation Reporter) analyses, drift-model work and proposed seabed search areas; his site lists numerous papers and claims detection of many Boeing 777 flights via WSPR data [3] [6]. He has been a visible member of the independent MH370 community since 2014, a founding member of the MH370 Independent Group and has engaged with next-of-kin events and public media interviews [1] [6].
2. How mainstream reporting describes his background
Major outlets widely quoted him as a “retired aerospace engineer” with experience on automatic landing systems and autopilots; BBC, The Week and other news sites reported he combined satellite, drift and performance data to argue for a crash site west of Perth and described his engineering background in aviation systems [2] [7] [8]. The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) called his work “credible” in the sense of being taken seriously enough to prompt a re-check of previously searched data, while noting the agency had not independently reviewed his full technical report [9].
3. Challenges and competing appraisals of his expertise
Investigative commentators and some researchers have pushed back on claims of an aerospace-specialist résumé. A lengthy investigative podcast/article asserts he “does not have expertise in aerospace nor a professional background in aviation at all,” portraying him primarily as a software/IT/backend systems professional and questioning some asserted aerospace affiliations [4]. Media profiles and later outlets present mixed portraits—some calling him a “British engineer” with systems-engineering and IT experience while noting his aviation-specific claims are not uniformly documented [5] [1].
4. Technical contributions: WSPR and drift modelling
Godfrey popularized using WSPR — a global amateur radio network — as a passive radar-type “tripwire” to detect aircraft-induced signal disturbances; he and collaborators published trials claiming detections and proposed new search coordinates based on combined WSPR, Inmarsat timing, drift and performance models [3] [6] [5]. His papers and collaborative reports (including with researchers at Radiant Physics and others) propose search recommendations and alternate probable endpoints based on oceanography and debris-drift analysis [10] [3].
5. Institutional reactions and limits of verification
The ATSB publicly acknowledged Godfrey’s report and described him as “credible on the subject of MH370” but said the bureau had not been asked to review his methods and asked Geoscience Australia to re-check data in areas he highlighted — an action that illustrates official interest without endorsement of his conclusions [9]. Available sources do not mention any formal institutional validation (for example, a university or aviation regulatory body certifying his WSPR method as proven) beyond press and agency desk reviews [9] [11].
6. Why this background matters to the MH370 debate
If Godfrey’s hybrid approach (radio signal forensics + drift + avionics performance) is valid, it could narrow search zones and change how passive datasets are used; critics worry that overstating aerospace credentials or methodological limits could mislead relatives, funders, or decision-makers about the likelihood of success [6] [4]. Supporters and some press framed him as an independent innovator who brought lateral thinking to a stalled investigation; detractors frame him as an IT practitioner who may have overstated aerospace experience [5] [4].
7. Bottom line for readers
Richard Godfrey is a prominent independent MH370 investigator with extensive public output on WSPR and drift methods and a professional history centered on systems engineering and IT; mainstream outlets often call him a retired aerospace engineer while investigative reporting and some profiles emphasize a primarily IT/systems career and question specific aerospace claims [1] [2] [4] [5]. The ATSB treated his work as credible enough to prompt re-examination of search-area data but has not validated his methods or findings as definitive [9].