Malaysia agrees to launch new search for flight MH370, which disappeared a decade ago with 239 people on board

Malaysia announced on Friday that they have agreed to launch a new investigation for Malaysia Airlines flight MH370who disappeared 10 years ago in one of aviation's greatest enduring mysteries.

The Boeing 777 carrying 239 people out of sight from radar screens on March 8, 2014 while en route from Kuala Lumpur to Beijing.

Despite the greatest search in the history of aviation, the plane was never found. Malaysia's Prime Minister said 17 days after the plane disappeared, based on the satellite data, his government conclude that the plane crashed in a remote corner of the Indian Ocean, and no one was alive.

Transport Minister Anthony Loke said Malaysia had agreed to a new survey operation by a marine survey company Ocean Infinitywho also hunted unsuccessfully in 2018.

The company's initial efforts followed a major Australian-led investigation into the aircraft that lasted three years before being called off in January 2017.

Loke said a new area of ​​5,800 square miles of the southern Indian Ocean would be scoured by Ocean Infinity, which is based in the United Kingdom and the United States.

“The new study area proposed by Ocean Infinity is based on the latest information and data analysis carried out by experts and researchers,” said Loke.

“The proposal for exploration work with Ocean Infinity is very strong and deserves consideration,” he told reporters.

The government said it approved Ocean Infinity's proposal “in principle” on December 13, with the transport ministry expected to finalize terms by early 2025.

The new investigation will begin “as soon as the contract is finalized and signed by both parties,” Loke said.

“They have told us that between January and April is the best time for research in the specified waters. We are working to conclude the agreement as soon as possible,” he said.

“I really hope that the loss of MH370 will come to an end. Can all the questions be answered,” Malaysian Rosila Abu Samah, 60, the stepmother of one of the passengers, told AFP.

Malaysian Shim Kok Chau, 49, whose wife was a flight attendant on the ill-fated flight, said he had accepted what had happened but hoped to find out what happened to the plane , “why it happened and who did it.”

Among the other victims was a distinguished group of 24 Chinese calligraphy artists coming from an exhibition of their work. Two young Iranian men were on the plane, 18-year-old Pouria Nour Mohammad Mehrdad and 29-year-old Delavar Seyed Mohammadreza, traveling on stolen passports to seek a better life in Europe.

Two of the US citizens on the plane were young children, Nicole Meng, 4, and 2-year-old Yan Zhang.

Philip Wood was the only one American adults on the plane. The IBM executive had been living in Beijing and planned to move to the Malaysian capital with his girlfriend, Sarah Bajc.

“No trace, no charge”

The new search will be on the same “no find, no charge” principle as Ocean Infinity's previous search, and the government will only pay if they find the plane.

The contract is for 18 months and Malaysia will pay the company $70 million if the plane is found, Loke said.

He said the decision to approve a new investigation “shows the commitment of the Malaysian government to continue the investigation and bring closure to the families of the victims of MH370.” “

The initial Australian-led search covered 120,000 square kilometers in the Indian Ocean but no trace of the plane was found, and only some debris was picked up.

In July 2015, a later plane clip proved to be a flaperon from MH370 was found washed ashore on the island of Reunion in the West Indian Ocean. This was the first hard evidence that the plane went down in the area. More debris was later found washed up on the coast of East Africa.

The plane's disappearance has long been the subject of theories – including former pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah he had gone wrong.

A final report on the tragedy published in 2018 pointed to a failure in air traffic control and said the flight's course was manually changed.

Asked if he was confident the plane would be found during the new search, Loke said: “At this stage, no one can make any guarantees.”

“It has been more than 10 years, and it would be unfair to expect a solid guarantee. However, under the terms and conditions, any discovery must be credible. It cannot be just a few pieces; specific criteria are defined in the contract.”