Missing since 2014

Malaysia launches new search for flight MH370

More than ten years after the mysterious disappearance of MH370, there is a new, promising lead to the crashed plane.

(Bild: APA/EPA/Republic of Singapore Navy)

More than ten years after the mysterious disappearance of flight MH370, the search for the Malaysia Airlines plane is to be resumed. Malaysia's government has agreed to a new search operation, said Transport Minister Anthony Loke on Friday. The proposal from the US company Ocean Infinity was "solid and deserves to be considered". Ocean Infinity had already unsuccessfully searched for the wreckage in 2018, albeit in a different search area.

The Malaysia Airlines Boeing 777 suddenly disappeared from radar screens on March 8, 2014, with 239 people on board on its way from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing. Experts suspect that the plane deviated from its course and crashed into the southern Indian Ocean after flying for hours with an empty tank.

Largest search operation in aviation history
However, no trace of the wreckage was found during a search of an area covering 120,000 square kilometers; only a few pieces of debris washed up on the coast. In January 2017, Australia, Malaysia and China suspended the largest search operation in aviation history. The fate of flight MH370 remained one of the greatest mysteries in aviation history.

(Bild: APA)

Following protests from relatives, Malaysia's government commissioned the US company Ocean Infinity to continue the search for the first time in 2018: the search then focused on an area of around 25,000 square kilometers north of the first search zone. However, the search vessel "Seabed Constructor" was unable to locate the wreck, even with underwater drones.

15,000 square kilometers in focus
The Malaysian government has now given the green light for another search operation: according to Transport Minister Loke, this time an area of 15,000 square kilometers in the southern Indian Ocean is to be searched. Ocean Infinity had defined the new search area based on "the latest information and data analysis from experts and researchers", said Loke. If the company finds the wreck, it will receive 70 million dollars (67 million euros).

Final details need to be clarified
Malaysia's government agreed "in principle" to Ocean Infinity's new plan a week ago, Loke added. The Ministry of Transport will now determine the exact terms of the contract by early 2025. The search could begin "as soon as the contract is finalized and signed by both parties".

According to the company, the ideal time for the search in the defined search area is between January and April. The government is therefore endeavoring to "conclude the agreement as quickly as possible".