Malaysia’s transport ministry announced the deep-sea search for Malaysia Airlines Flight 370 will resume on December 30, reviving hopes of learning the fate of the jet that disappeared more than a decade ago.
Flight 370, a Boeing 777 carrying 239 people—most of them Chinese nationals—vanished on March 8, 2014 shortly after departing Kuala Lumpur for Beijing. Satellite data later showed the aircraft veered off its planned route and flew south into a remote area of the Indian Ocean, where investigators believe it ultimately crashed.
US-based marine robotics company Ocean Infinity will carry out intermittent search operations beginning December 30, covering 55 days in zones assessed to have the highest probability of locating the wreckage.
The ministry said the move reflects the Malaysian government’s continued commitment to providing closure to families affected by the tragedy.
Earlier this year Malaysia approved a “no-find, no-fee” contract with Ocean Infinity to survey a new 15,000-square-kilometre section of seabed. Under the agreement the company would be paid $70 million only if it locates the aircraft. A previous phase of the search was halted in April because of rough weather.
Despite one of the most extensive and costly multinational searches in aviation history, no definitive trace of the plane has been found apart from debris that washed ashore in East Africa and on islands in the Indian Ocean. Ocean Infinity’s private search in 2018 also ended without new discoveries.
Inputs from AP
